Historical sketches of the Catholic Church in Oregon, during the past forty years

I

THE ROBERT E. COWAN COLLECTION

PRESKNTED TO THE

UNIVERSITY OF CflLIFORNIR

i;v

C, p. HUNTINGTON

cJUNE, 1897,

Recession No 7<^ /^/ ^^^^^ ^^•

)^^t^'

>'\CL-htCT^€{ fr•<^•v»c{b | lov-fcr^vT"

Historical Sketches of

—THE—

OatlioliG GtilircH ill Oregoq,

DURING THE PAST FORTY YEARS

PORTLAND, OREGON:

18 7 8.

-jo/ij

.HISTORICAL SKETCHES

OF-

THE CATHOLIC CHURCH ffl OREGON,

DIRINC; THE PAST FOKTY YEARS.

The history of the Catholic Church — even in the
most remote regions where its benign influence is
felt — possesses great interest not only for those who
belong to *^the household of faith'' but, moreover, to
every one interested in the history of civilization and
Christianity. Nations have their religious historical
aspect as well as those better known and more studied
chapters pertaining to secular advancement, yet,
whilst historians love to record the triumphs which
mark the pathway of the pioneers of the forest, they
are very reticent regarding the labor, the trials and
the heroism displayed by the pioneers of the cross.
Yet these heroes of heaven-born Faith — armed with
no weapon save the sign of man's redemption, and
bearing aloft the oriflamme of Christianity — penetrate
into the remotest recesses of the earth, guided by the
unerring voice of God who calls them to take up
their Cross, and follow Him, until His precepts be-

6 SKETCHES OF THE

come known throughout the world even '^from the
rising of the sun until the going down of the same/'

It is our pleasant duty, then, to place before our
readers a few glimpses of the toils and trials which
the pioneers of the Cross endured in their early
struggles to plant the seed of Christianity in the
great Northwest, and in doing so we feel that eveiy
Catholic who peruses these sketches will treasure in
his heart a grateful remembrance for those whose
names will be inscribed in the niche of immortality
so deservedly accorded by faithful Catholics to
the apostles of the Cross.

The world has its heroes, but to the missionaries
of the everlasting gospel must be assigned a far high-
er glory, because they aie the heralds of a King
whose footstool is the universe ! It is in His service
that deeds of heroism are performed which make all
worldly actions pale into utter insignificance. The
reason is obvious : the hero of the world displays his
valor for earthly glory alone, whilst the missionary
of the Cross is animated by the highest and holiest
aspirations that can illumine the soul — the hope of
enjoying with God the eternal reward promised to
those who scatter the seeds of Faith among the tribes
and people who are without the knowledge of the
true God.

This, then, was the high and ennobling mission in
which the pioneers of the Cross in Oregon engaged
when they undertook to cross the almost trackless
plains which then Separated the Atlantic from the
Pacific, and, as we follow them through their long
and arduous journey, let us not forget to chant a

CATHOLIC CHURCH IN OREGON. 7

requiem over the graves of those who have passed to
their reward, whilst we accord to those who are still
engaged in God's service that homage so justly ac-
corded to venerable age, holiness of office, and
sanctity of life.

The First Catholics in Oregon.

When the renowned Jesuit missionary and subse-
quent martyr to the Faith — Father Isaac Jogues —
first planted the seeds of faith among the Iroquois
Indians on the banks of the Mohawk, in 1642, he
little thought that the grain of mustard-seed thus
sown would eventually grow up into a great tree
whose branches would reach from the Atlantic to the
Pacific. But, when we reflect that ''the blood of the
martyrs is the seed of the Church,'' we need not w^on-
der at such a miraculous manifestation of God's will,
and the mutilated hands and tortured limbs of that
suffering missionary were accepted by Heaven as so
many holocausts offered up for the propagation of
the Faith throughout eveiy portion of the American
continent.

Another element of population through whose pre-
sence in Oregon the Catholic creed was propagated,
was the Canadian voyageurs, large numbers of whom
were engaged to accompany the several expeditions
of Lewis and Clark in 1805, John Jacob Astor in
1810, and that of Capt. Hunt in 1811. In Astor's
expedition there were thirteen Canadians nearly all of
whom were Catholics, and many of these pioneers
afterwards settled in the Willamette valley where in
1838, still resided Michel La Fromboise, Ettienne

8 SKETCHES OF THE

Lucier, Louis Labonte and Joseph Gervais. Capt.
Hunt's expedition having encountered great hard-
ship on the route across the plains, many of the
members deserted from its ranks and remained among
the Indians, and this fact will also serve to account
for the presence of a number of Iroquois Indians
who were found among the Flatheads in 1816.
Large numbers of Canadians and Iroquois were also
engaged in the service of both the North West Com-
pany and the Hudson Bay Company as' traders and
trappers at their different stations west of the Rocky
Mountains. These hardy pioneers led a roaming
life, but, true to their early education, amidst all the
scenes of savage life through which they passed, they
never forgot their faith, but on every occasion when
danger threatened them they sought the God of sal-
vation in prayer. In this manner the Indians, by
whom they were surrounded, received the first know-
ledge of ''the white man's God," and through these
Catholics they also learned of the Blackgown long
years before they were visited by a priest. To the
Canadians and Iriquois, therefore, is the honor due
of opening the way for the Catholic missionary in
Oregon.

The First Colonists in Oregon.
In 1824, Dr. John McLaughlin, chief Factor of the
Hudson Bay Co., was appointed Governor of the
Hudson Bay Co's. posts, with head-quarters at Van-
couver, Washington Territory, where a Fort was
erected that year. He was one of ''nature's noble-
men" in every sphere of life. Of commanding pres-
ence, strict integrity, sound judgment, and correct

CATHOLIC CHURCH IN OREGON. V

principles of justice, no man was better qualified for
the position he occupied as the father and friend of
both the Indians and the whites who then jointly
occupied the Pacific northwest. Dr. McLaughlin
was the arbiter to whom both whites and Indians
looked for the settlement of their differences, and the
friend from whom they sought relief in all their dif-
ficulties. His ashes rest beneath the shadow of the
Cathedral cross in Oregon City, where he died in
1857. He was originally a member of the Anglican '
Church, but was converted by Archbishop Blanchet
in 1841, and was ever afterwards a most exemplary
Catholic — May his soul rest in peace.

Under the impartial supervision of this good and
great man the business of the Hudson Bay Company
prospered amazingly ; he perpetuated peace be-
tween the Indians and the employes of the Company,
and established twenty-eight trading posts during the
fourteen years he presided over the destinies of the
Corporation he so ably represented. Under Dr.
McLaughlin's direction a number of the employes
of the Company whose term of service had expired
w^ere supplied with provisions and farming utensils
to enable them to settle in that portion of the Wil-
lamette valley which has since been known as the
French Prairie, and which afterwards became the nu-
cleus of a large and prosperous Catholic settlement.
He also extended assistance to every immigrant
whose necessities required it, and his good deeds
have enshrined his name amidst the most honored of
the pioneers of the Pacific coast.

In 1834 the first wave of immiofration reached the

OF THE

lO SKETHCES OF THE ^

shores of Oregon. These comprised a number of
Methodist ministers sent out by the Board of Foreign
Missions. In 1836 a number of Presbyterian mis-
sionaries arrived, and the following year a second
installment of Methodist preachers were sent thither
in order to help the first under the ostensible pur-
pose of securing souls for the Lord's vineyard, but
in reality to secure large tracts of land, large bands
of cattle, and to enlarge their numerous commercial
speculations. Again in 1838 the Presbyterian mis-
sionaries were re-inforced, so that, prior to the
arrival of a Catholic missionary in Oregon, the sects
were represented by twenty-nine regular preachers
besides a numerous retinue of agents, colporteurs,
and other members — male and female. These forces
were pretty well scattered over the country, the Me-
thodists having establishments south of the French
Prairie, in Marion County, and also at the Dalles in
Wasco County. The Presbyterians were located at
Wailatpu, on the Walla Walla river, among a poif-
tion of the Cayuse Indians, and also at Lapwai, on
the Clearwater. Besides these, Mr. Beaver repre-
sented the Anglican Church at Vancouver, as chap-
lain of the Hudson Bay Company, so that the
missionary field was well occupied prior to the ad-
vent of a Catholic priest, and it is well to understand
the situation so that the reader may better realize
the amount of opposition which the pioneer mission-
aries of the Catholic Church had to encounter in
their efforts to plant the Cross in Oregon.

Let us now pause for awhile in our career after the
cross-bearers of the west, whilst we learn from con-

CA.THOLIC CHURCH m OREGON. 11

temporary evidence the manner in which the
sectarian missionaries preached the gospel to the
Indians whom they came to convert. The first
Protestant missionaries left the Eastern states amidst
great eclat, under the impression that they were
going to the Flathead Indians for the purpose of
having them and all adjacent tribes take up the
bible as their rule of faith. But, after a very brief
trial, these gentlemen found the situation not so con-
genial as they anticipated, and they abandoned the
Flatheads to their perfidious fate. Mr. Townshend,
whose work on the Eocky Mountains is our authority
on this point, says that when he travelled a few days
in the company of these ' 'missionaries'' he soon dis-
covered that their object in going west was not so
much for the purpose of spreading Christianity
among the Indians as it was ''for the gratification of
seeing a new country and participating in strange
adventures." They candidly admitted to Mr. Town-
shend that the means of subsistence in a region so
remote and so difficult of access, were, to say the
least, very doubtful. Hence, as these propagan-
dists of Protestant error could not be assured of a
well-stocked larder, they quietly "folded their tents''
and left the Flatheads in the mist of that pagan
darkness in which tl)ey found them enshrouded.
Little did these tourists think when they forsook the
poor Flathead Indians that there were those coming
after them who would never forsake the mission
given them from on high, but who could say with St.
Paul: "Even unto this hour we both hunger and
thirst, and are naked, and are buifeted, and have no

12 SKETCHES OF THE

fixed abode." These are the Catholic missionaries
whose labors once begun were never abandoned, and
whose efforts we shall find crowned with success so
that the whole FMhead tribe of Indians embraced
ihe Catholic faith and are to-day among the most
happy and prosperous communities in the entire re-
public.

No * 'missionaries" were ever despatched to repre-
sent the various sects in any land under more favor-
able auspices than were those ladies and gentlemen
belonging to the Methodist Episcopal Church who
proffered their services to leave their eastern homes
for the purpose of evangelizing the savage Indians
amidst the ' 'wilds" of Oregon. The history of that
memorable band has been written by two of these
missionaries in language more truthful than com-
plimentary to their companions.

Daniel Lee and J. H. Frost were two of the evan-
gelical eleet who were sent out to ''bring the Indians
to grace', and in their work entitled "Ten years in
Oregon" they give us an unbiassed insight into the
manner in which the Master's service was abandoned
by these "missionaries," in order that they might
enter into the slavery of Mammon. These gentle-
men tell us that the Oregon mission involved an
expenditure of forty-two thousand dollars in a single
year, and no wonder, when there were sixty-eight
j)ersons connected with the "mission" each of them
represented by a respectable array of figures on the
yearly pay-roll.

catholic church in oregon. 13

Protestant Missionary Labors in Oregon.

The Methodists, Presbyterians, and other sects,
as we have already seen, were represented in Oregon
as early as 1834 by a corps of missionaries sufficient
in number — if they only had a divine mission
to sustain them throughout their labors — to con-
vert all the Indians from Arizona to Alaska, but Dr,
Stephen Olin, L. L. D., a Methodist bishop, tells u&
that ''very few of the Indians came under the influ-
ence of their labor,'' and adds this rather damaging
declaration : — '*The missionaries were, in fact, most-
ly engaged in secular affairs — concerned in claims to
large tracts of land, claims to city lots, farming,
merchandizing, blacksmithing, grazing, horse-keep-
ing, lumbering and flouring. We do not believe'^
continues Dr. Stephen Olin, L. L. D. ''that the
history of Christian missions exhibits another such
spectacle.'' The good Doctor was evidently amazed
at the transformation from missionaries of the gos-
pel into land-sharks and horse-jockeys. It is no
wonder, then, that he tells us "the mission became
odious to the growing population," and he concludes
his evidence by asserting that "of all the Indians
who had ever held relations of any kind with these
men, none no%o remain.'' This is not very flattering'
testimony for the success of Protestant propagandists
coming fiom a Protestant source, but "let truth be
told though the heavens fall" was evidently a prac-
tical maxim in the mind of the Methodist Episcopal
Bishop we have quoted. Nor need we wonder that
missionaries who traded in horse flesh and town lots
and who had "cattle on a thousand hills" should

14 SKETCHES OF THE

become '' odious" to the settlers around tliem, whilst

the Indians instead of s.eeking the light of the gospel

as enunciated by these holy horse-traders, sought

rather to retire to their primitive wigwams amidst

the solitude of the woods

''where rolls the Oregon
And hears no sound save its own dashing/'

than to encounter a civilization the very preachers of
which sought first the kingdom of this world, and
took the chances of ''all things else" being added
thereto.

Bev. G. C. Nicolay, a minister of the Church of
England, visited this country in 1843 and has left
his impressions of what he saw among the mission-
aries of the Willamette valley in a work entitled
**The Oregon Territory" which we have before us.
He was evidently unbiassed in his judgment and
speaks his mind only because his experience had re-
ceived a severe shock in the manner in which he
found the so-called ''missionaries" comporting them-
selves. Under the chapter devoted to "settlers in
Oregon" this authority says with truth : —

''It seems but the right and proper order of things that
the missionary in uncivilized lands should be the harbinger
not only of the blessings of the Christian religion, but
of civilization also, and therefore that he should be followed
in his track by the settler and farmer, the mechanic and
artisan, who obtain as the reward of their superior intelli-
gence and knowledge the wealth and independence which
in their own country their simple equality with others could
not expect ; and this is just, the benefit they confer is in-
calculable : it does not decrease its value that others in
distant lands possess the same, but rather increases it a

CATHOLIC CHURCH IN OREGON. 15

I*

he means whereby they may be raised to the same emin-
ence. Now though this is to be expected and desired, it
has ever been thought a just ground of complaint against
men whose lives are devoted to the service of God and the
spread of his Gospel, if they let other occupations interfere
with that which ought to be their primary one, or seek to
make *a gain of godhness ;' and still more if the influence
accorded to them, in consequence of their important duty
and sacred office, be converted into an engine for political
purposes, or they teach other doctrine with respect to our
neighbours than the words of the Apostle — ^Follow peace
with all men.'

In reviewing the history of the settlers in Oregon, all this
will appear by their own showing to lie at the door of the
American missionaries who have established themselves
there ; and the necessity for drawing attention to it is this,
that no satisfactory account of Oregon could be given with-
out some notice of the Wallamette Settlement, and certainly
no true statement of affairs there can be given without
these facts being referred to. In their settlements at
Okanagan, Walla - walla, Cowehtz, and Nisqually this
charge is so far true, that their principal attention, as Lieut.
Wilkes testifies, is devoted to agriculture, but on the Wal-
lamette they sink into political agents and wouldbe legisla-
tors. This the history of that settlement will sufficiently
evidence." ^^^^^-^^^^^

^Trom this beginning the colony increased, till, when
Lieutenant Wilkes visited it in 1841, it counted sixty fam-
ilies,- who, he says, consisted of American missionaries,
trappers, and Canadians, who were formerly servants of
the Hudson's Bay Company ; and that the orgin of the
settlement has been fairly stated, may be gathered from the
conclusion he arrived at concerning it. All of them ap-
peared to be doiag well ; but he was, he says, 'on the whole
disappointed, from the reports which had been made tome,

16 SKETCHES OF THE

3iot to find the settlement in a greater state of forwardness,
considering the advantages the missionaries have had ;' —
thus making the prosperity and advancement of the settle-
ment depend in a great measure, if not entirely, upon
them : but that their missionary intentions have merged in
^ great measure in others more closely connected with ease
And comfort, is still more plainly evidenced by the following
account given by him of the Wesleyan Mission there :
The lands of the Methodist Mission are situated on the
banks of the Wallamette river, on a rich plain adjacent to
fine forests of oak and pine. They are about eight miles
beyond the Catholic Mission, in a southern direction. Their
fields are well enclosed, and we passed a large one of wheat
which we understood was half sown by the last year's crop
which had been lost through neglect. . The crop so lost
amounted to nearl3^ a thousand bushels, and it is supposed
that this year's crop will yield twenty-five bushels to the
acre. About all the premises of this mission there was an
evident want of the attention required to keep things in re-
pair, and an absence of neatness that I regretted much to
witness. We had the expectation of getting a sight of the
Indians, on whom they were inculcating good habits and
teaching the word of God, but, with the exception of four
Indian servants, we saw none since leaving the Catholic
Mission. On inquiring I was informed that they had a
school of twenty pupils some ten miles distant at the mill,
that there were but few adult Indians in the neighbourhood
and that their intention and principal hope was to establish
a colony, and by their example to induce white settlers to
locate near them, over whom they trusted to exercise a
moral and religious influence.' "

At the mills, which were badly situated and managed, he
saw twenty lay members of the Mission under the charge of
a principal, and about twenty-five Indian boys, who, he
was told, were not in a condition to be visited or inspected.
They were nearly grown up, ragged, and half clothed, and

CATHOLIC CHURCH IN OEEOON. 17

lounging about under the trees. He might well add,
^ 'Their appearance was anything but satisfactory, and I
must own I was greatly disappointed, for I had been led to
expect that order and neatness at least (he could scarce
have expected less) would have been found among them,
considering the strong force of missionaries engaged here.
From tbe number of persons about the premises this little
spot w^ore the air and stir of a new secular settlement. It
was intended to be the home and location of the mission,
and the missionaries had made individual selections of
lands to the amount of one thousand acres each, in pros-
pect of the whole country falling under the American
dominion.

Holding these views, and with such interests to incite
them, it is not surprising to find these missionaries among
the first to excite political changes, and to introduce the
consequent discussions and dissensions.' '

Such is the character of the work inaugurated by
missionaries who left the Atlantic slope under the
hallucination that they w^ere called to preach salva-
tion to those that sat in darkness and in the shadow
of death, but whose trading prepensities overcame
their religious zeal, until finally the cause of Chris-
tianity was wrecked on the shoals of aggrandisement.

The foregoing extracts, taken entirely from im-
partial Protestant sources, will give the general read-
er a very lucid view of the ' 'severe trials" which the
early Protestant missionaries underwent in their
so-called "missionary labor" in Oregon, but we have
by no means exhausted the evidence extant on that
score, as Hon. Alexander Simpson, in his' work
entitled ''The Oregon Territory" tells us, in
allusion to the Methodist and Catholic missions in
the Willamette valley, that "the latter consisted of

18 SKETCHES OF THE

about one hundred families, a very regular congrega-
tion, ministered to by Mgr. Blancliet, a most estimable
and indefatigable priest of the Koman Catholic
faith/' whilst the Methodist Mission, he adds,
^'consisted of four families : a clergyman, a surgeon,
a school-master and an agricultural overseer/'
Evidently the temporal welfare of the well-fed
Protestant missionaries was far more important in
their own estimation than any spiritual comforts
which they pretended to extend to the Indians.

First Indian Missions in Oregon.

Let us now turn from scenes where the temxDoral
overshadows the spiritual interests to such an extent,
and learn how eager the Indians were to behold the
long-expected Black-Gowns. This interesting his-
torical fact is elaborately set forth in the following
historical document : —

I^etter of the Itiglit Rev. Joscpli Ro.sati, Bigliop of >S1. Louis, Co
the Rig,2it Rev. Father iieueral of the Society of Jesus, at
Rome.

St. Louis, October 20th, 1839.
My Eight Rev. Father :
Twenty-three^ years ago, two Indians of the Iroquois
mission, left their native country, Canada, with twenty- two
other warriors, and went to settle in a country situated be-
tween the Rocky Mountains and the Pacific sea. That
country is inhabited by infidel nations, and especially by
those the French call Tetes Plattes. They married
there and were incorporated into the Indian nation. As
they were well instructed in the Catholic religion, professed
by the Iroquois — converted by the ancient Fathers of your

"^'It was actually twenty-seven yeais. — Ed.

£ OF THE ^

fi TTNIVERSITY \ ,^

CITHOLIC CHURCH ^N OREOQX. J 19

Society— they have continued to practice^ it as^much as it
was in their power, and have taught it to their wives and
children. Their zeal went even further ; becoming Ap(»s-
tles, they have sown the first seeds of Catholicity in the
midst of the infidel nations among whom they live. These
precious gems begin already to bring forth fruit, for they
have caused to spring in the hearts of the Indians the desire
of having Missionaries who would teach them the divine law.

Eight or nine years ago (about 1830), some of the Flat-
head nation came to St. Louis. The object of their journey
was to ascertain if the religion spoken of with so much
praise by the Iroquois warriors was in reality such as rep-
resented, and above all, if the nations that have white skin,
(name they give to Europeans) had adopted and practiced
it. Soon after their arrival in St. Louis, they fell sick,
called for the priest and earnestly asked by signs to be bap-
tized. Their request was eagerly granted and they received
the holy baptism with great devotion : then holding the
crucifix, they covered it with affectionate kisses and expired.

Some years after (about 1832); the Flathead nation sent
again one of the Iroquios to St. Louis. There he came with
two of his children, who were instructed and baptized by
the Fathers of the college. He asked Missionaries for his
countrymen, and started with the hope that one day, the
desire of the nation would be at last accomplished. But,
on his journey, he was killed by the infidel Indians of the
Sioux nation.

At last, a third deputation of Indians arrived at St. Louis
(1839) after a long voyage of three months. It is composed
of two Christian Iroquois. These Indians who talk French
have edified us by their truly exemplary conduct and inter-
ested us by their discourses. The Fathers of the college
have heard their confessions, and to-day they approached
the holy table at my Mass, in the Cathedral church. After-
wards I administered them the sacrament of Confirmation ;
and in an allocution delivered after the cere^aiony, I rejoiced

20 SKETCHES OF THE

with them at their happiness and gave them the hope to
have soon a priest.

They will leave to-morrow for their home ; a priest will
follow them next Spring. Out of the twenty- four Iroquois
who formerly immigrated from Canada, four only are still
living. 'Not content with planting the Faith in these sav-
age countries, they have also defended it against the preju-
dices of the Protestant ministers. When these pretended
missionaries presented themselves, our good Catholics re-
fused to receive them. * 'These are not the priests we have
spoken of to you,'' they said to the Flatheads, ''they are
not the priests with long black gowns, who have no wives,
who say Mass, and carry a crucifix with them, ' ' etc. For
God's sake, my Eight Rev. Father, forsake not their souls.
Accept, etc., etc. f Joseph, Bishop of St. Louis.

Establishment of the First Catholic Mission.

The letter which we^ publish above from the
Bishop of St. Louis, Mo., to the Jesuit Fathers,
produced at once the result anticipated. No sooner
had these courageous soldiers of the cross learned
that there were thousands of souls pining for the
presence of the true disciples of God, than they set
to w^ork at once perfecting their plans so that the
bread of life might be broken to the Indians in
the far west. Father Peter John De Smet, was se-
lected as the apostle to carry the cross to the Flat-
head nation, and, after making a few necessary pre-
parations, he set out in the spring of 1840 on his
long and arduous journey. Of the trials which be-
set him on his trip he has left a full account in his
sketches of the Western Missions, which are read at
this distant day with the same interest that sur-

CATHOLIC CHURCH IN OREGON. 21

rounded them nearly forty years ago. His mission
lasted two months and resulted in the conversion of
six hundred Flatheads, and finding the Indians so
well disposed to receive the Word of Life, he re-
turned to St. Louis for the purpose of securing ad-
ditional Fathers, as he saw the work before them
was one of great magnitude.

Father De Smet accompanied by two other Jesuit
Fathers, accordingly returned to the Flathead In-
^ dians in 1841, bringing with them many articles
necessary for the establishment of a permanent mis-
sion, and in a short time he had the holy satisfaction
of beholding the emblem of Christianityjarising over
the little church which marked the foundation
of the Mission of St. Mary's of the Eocky Mountains.

In the mean time the Canadians who had settled
in what was then known as the Wullamette valley
(but which has since become recognized as the
Willamette) began to pine for the presence of a
priest in their midst. The nearest bishop to whom
they could apply was the venerable prelate of Red
Eiver; they sent him two petitions, one dated July
3rd, 1834 and the other Feb. 23rd, 1835, earnestly
praying for some priests. In answering them, July
8th, 1835, the Bishop, addressing the Governor, ,
requests him to deliver them his letter. Those
documents are too precious and too interesting to be
omitted, therefore we insert them.

TlieBii^Iiop of Jiiliopoli^ to Dr. Joliu UlcLaiiglilin.

Eed Eiver, June 6th 1835.
To Dr. J. McLaughlin.

Sir : I have received last winter and this spring a pe-
tition from certain free families settled on the Wallamette

22 " SKETCHES OF THE

river, requesting that missionaries be sent to instruct their
children and themselves. My intention is to do all I can to
grant them their request as soon as possible, I have no
priest disposable at Red Eiver, but I am going this year to
Europe, and I will endeavor to procure those free people
and the Indians afterwards the means of knowing God. I
send together with this letter an answer to the petition
which I have received ; I request you to deliver it to them ;
I add some catechisms which might be useful to those
people, if there is any one among them that can read.
Those people say they are protected by you. Please in-
duce them to do their best, and to deserve by good beha-
viour, to derive benefit for the favor they implore.
I have the honor to be. Sir,

Your most humble servant,
fJ. N. Provencher, Bishop of Juliopolis.

The Bigliop of Juliopolis to all the fainUaes setile<l in the
Wallaiiiette valley and other Catholics heyond the Rocky
Mountains, greeting :

I have received, most beloved brethren, your two pe-
titions, one dated 3d July 1834, and the other 23d February
1835. Both call for missionaries to instruct your children
and yourselves. Such a request from persons deprived of
all religious attendance, could not fail to touch my heart,
and if it was in my power, I w^(»uld send you some this
very year. But I have no priests disposable at Red
Eiver : They must be o])tained from Canada or elsewhere,
which requires time. I will make it my business in a
journey which I am going to make this year in Canada
and in Europe, If I succeed in my efforts I will soon send
you some help.

My intention is not to procure the knowledge of God to
you and your children only, but also to the numerous In-
dian tribes among which you live. I exhort you mean-

CATHOLIC CHURCH IN OREGON. 23

while to deserve by a good behaviour that God may bless
my undertaking. Eaise your children the best way you
can. Teach them what you know of religion. But re-
member, my dear brethren, that the proper means of
procuring to your children and your wives some notion of
God and the religion you profess, is to give them good ex-
ample, by a life moderate and exempt from the great dis-
orders which exist among the christians beyond the
mountains. What idea do you give of God, and of the
religion you profess, to the Indians especially, who see in
you, who are calling yourselves the servant of that great
God, disorders which equal and perhaps surpass their own ?
You thereby prejudice them against a holy religion which
you violate. When this same religion, which condemns all
crime, shall be preached to them, the Indians will object
the wicked conduct of those who profess it as a protest not
to embrace it. On receiving this letter which apprizes
you that probably you will soon receive the priest whom
you seem to pray for earnestly, renounce then at once
sin ; begin to lead a life more conformable to your belief, in
order that, when the missionaries will arrive among you,
they will find you disposed to avail yourselves of the in-
structions and other religious assistance which they shall
bring you. I wish God may touch your hearts and change
them. My greatest consolation would be to learn here-
after that as soon as this letter was read to you, you began
to pay a little more attention to the great affair of your sal-
vation.

Given at St. Bonifacdus of Red River, on the Sth day of
June, 1835. f J. IN". Provencher. Bishop of Juliopolis.

Demand of a Passage for Two Priests.

The only means of communication from Canada to
Oregon, being in the hands of the Hudson Bay Co.,
loj sending every year a number of canoes laden

24 SKETCHES OF THE

with goods and conducted by a number of Canadian
voyageurs, the Bishop of Juliopolis made an appli-
cation for the passage of two priests in one of the
canoes to Oregon, with the design of forming an es-
tablishment in the Wallamette valley. To this last
point the Governor and Committee in London ob-
jected, but would grant a passage on the condition
that the priests would form their establishment on
the Cowlitz river. The Bishop of Juliopolis having
complied with the suggestion, Sir George Simpson
wrote to the Archbishop of Quebec that if the two
priests would be ready at Lachine to embark for the
anterior about the 25th of April, a passage would be
afforded them. The following is the correspondence
on the subject : —

Letter of Sir Get^rse SiiiipHon, Goyernor of the lliiasoii Kay €o.
In the interior to his Lordship the Archbishop or<|iiel>ec.

Hudson's Bay House, London, 17th Feb. 1838.

' 'My Lord : I yesterday had the honor of receiving
fi letter from the Bishop of Juliopolis, dated Red
River, 13th October, 1837, wherein I am requested
to communicate with your Lordship, on the subject
of sending two priests to the Columbia river for the
purpose of establishing a Catholic Mission in that
part of the country.

''When the Bishop first mentioned this subject,
his view was to form the Mission on the banks of
Wallamette, a river falling into the Columbia from
the south. To the establishing of a mission there,
the Governor and Committee in London, and the
Council's in Hudson's Bay, had a decided objection,
as the sovereignty of that countiy is still undecided;

CATHOLIC CHURCH IN OREGON. 25

but I last fiummer, intimated to the Bishop that if
he would establish the mission on the banks of the
Cowlitz river or on the Cowlitz Portage, falling into
the Columbia from the northward, and give his as-
surance that the missionaries would not locate them-
selves on the south side of the Columbia river, but
would form their establishment where the Co's rep-
resentatives might point out as the most eligible
situation on the north side, I should recommend the
Governor and Committee to afford a passage to the
priests aud such facilities towards the successful ac-
complisnment of the object in view as would not in-
volve any great inconvenience or expense to the Co's
service.

''By the letter received yesterday, already alluded
to, the Bishop enters fully into my views, and ex-
presses his willingness to fall in with my suggestions.
That letter I have laid before the Governor and
Committee, and am now instructed to intimate to
your Lordship that if the priests will be ready at
Lachine to embark for the interior about the 25th
of April, a passage will be afforded them, and on
arrival at Fort Vancouver measures will be taken
by the Co's representative there to facilitate the es-
tablishing of the Mission, and the carrying into
effect the objects thereof generally.

I have the honor to be, My Lord.

Your Lordship's most obedient servant, .
Geo. Simpson.

Appointment of Missionaries.
The Archbishop of Quebec had no sooner received

26 SKETCHES OF THE

tlie foregoing letter than he immediately gave the
charge of the Mission of Oregon to Rev. Fbancis
NoRBERT Blanchet, then Cure des Cedres, district of
Montreal, by sending him letters of Vicar General
under the date of April 17th 1838, and instructions
bearing the same date. His companion, Rev. Modeste
Demers, who was already at Red River, was to be
named by the Right Rev. Bishop of Juliopolis. These
instructions were as follows :

In<^triiction.s given to Tery Rev. Francis Norbert Blanchet and
Rev. Modeste Demers, appointed Missionaries for tliat part of
tlie Diocese of Quebec wlilcli is situated between tlie Pacific
Ocean and tlie Rocky Mountains.

April 17th 1838.
My Rev. Fathers.

You must consider as the first object of your Mission
to withdraw from barbarity and the disorders which
it produces, the Indians scattered in that country.

Your second object is, to tender your services to
the wicked Christians who have adopted there the
vices of Indians, and live in licentiousness and the
forge tfulness of their duties.

Persuaded that the preaching of the Gospel is the
surest means of obtaining these happy results, you
will lose no opportunity of inculcating its principles
and maxims, either in your private ^conversations or
public instructions.

In order to make yourselves sooner useful to the
natives of the country where you are sent, you will
apply yourselves, as soon as you arrive, to the study
of the Indian languages, and will endeavor to reduce
them to regular principles, so as to be able to publish
a grammar after some years of residence there.

CATHOLIC CHURCH IN OREGON. 27

You will prepare for baptism, with all possible
expedition, the infidel women who live in concubinage
with Christians, in order to substitute lawful mar-
riages for these irregular unions.

You will take a particular care of the Christian
education of children, establishing for that purpose,
as much as your means will allow, schools and cate-
chism classes in all the villages which you will have
occasion to visit.

In all the places remarkable either for their position
or the passage of the voyagers, or the gathering of
Indians, you will plant more crosses, so as to take
possession of those various places in the name of
the Catholic religion. ^^ * * * jk

Given at Quebec on the 17th day of April, 1838,
fJOSEPH SIGNAY, Bishop of Quebec.

Journey of the Missionaries from Lachine to Fort
Vancouver.
Accompanied by chief trader Hargrave, Vicar
General F. N. Blanchet embarked in one of the
light bark canoes carrying the express of the Hudson
Bay Company, leaving Montreal on Thursday, May
3rd 1838, reaching Fort Vancouver on the 24th of
the following November. The journey from Lachine
to Red River (2,100 miles) was made in canoes, with
occasional portages, in thirty-three days. The jour-
ney from Red River to the Rocky Mountains (2,025
miles) occupied eighty-four days, including deten-
tions. The river route was ma3e in eleven light
barges and the land trip — occupying five days — was

28 SKETCHES OF THE

made on horseback. Horses were also used in ma-
king the tedious trip across the Kocky Mountains,
from Jasper's House to Boat Encampment or Big Bend
on the Columbia river. This trip occupied nine
days, a band of seventy-two horses being provided
for the use of the company. It took six days to
make the ascent on the Eastern slope, and three
days to descend to the plains on the Pacific side, but
the missionaries were well repaid for the toils they
underwent in the grandeur of the scenery that sur-
rounded them at every step. The remainder of the
journey, from Big Bend to Fort Vancouver (about
1200 miles) was made in light boats down the Colum-
bia river.

Vicar General Blanchet having passed thirty-five
days at Ked River, took his departure in company
with Rev. Modeste Demers on July 10th., stopping
en route at Norway House and Forts Constant, Cum-
berland, Carleton, Pitt and Edmonton on the Sas-
katchewan ; and Fort Assiniboine and Jasper's
House on the Athabasca river. During this journey
the missionaries baptized one hundred and twenty-
two on the Eastern slope and fifty-three on the West-
ern. After passing the summit of the Rocky Moun-
tains the missionaries stopped at the House of the
Lakes, and Forts Colville, O'Kanagan, and Walla
Walla, at each of which immense crowds of Indians
assembled in order to behold the Blackgmons whose
presence they had so long waited for. During this
long and tedious trip the missionaries had the happi-
ness of celebrating Mass and delivering an instruc-
tion every Sunday, and on every day at which they

CATHOLIC CHURCH IN OREGON. 29

sojourned at the Forts on their route. By this
means the consolations of our holy religion were
bestowed on many Catholics who for years had been
strangers to the presence of a priest.

Consecration of the Rocky Mountains to God ; First
Mass in Oregon.

As the summit of the Rocky Mountains was to be
reached and crossed on Wednesday the 10th of Oc-
tober, the Missionaries thought it incumbent upon
them to celebrate Mass and pronounce the glorious
words which make the God-man descend upon
earth, in thanksgiving for God's protection and
favors, and to consecrate, in a special manner, to
their Author these sublime Rocky Mountains which
by their grandeur and sublimity seem anxious to cor-
respond to the invitation of Holy Scripture : ^'0 ye
mountains a7id hills ^ bless the Lord; praise and exalt
him above all for ever'' (Dan. III. 15.) The country
abounding the Rocky Mountains appeared as. a vast
sea of numberless isolated high mountains, and ab-
rupt peaks of all shapes, where the eye of the trav-
eller fancies seeing here and there perfect towers,
beautiful turrets, strong castles, walls and fortifica-
tions of all kinds ; as well as barren heights which
form the base of higher hills and mountains raising
majestically their lofty heads to heaven. Magnificent
indeed is the spectacle displayed before the eyes of
the voyagers in the greatness of the gigantic nature
where the hand of the Eternal was pleased to retrace
the image of His creative power. Early on that day

so SKETCHES OF THR

therefore at 3 a. m. the Yicar General celebrated the
Holy Sacrifice of the Mass to consecrate to their
Creator these mountains and abrupt peaks whose
prodigious height ascend towards heaven to celebrate
in such beautiful language the praise of the Almighty.

It was on Saturday, the 13th of October, a day
dedicated to the Immaculate Mother of God, that,
being at the western foot of the most lofty mountains,
the two Missionaries began to tread beneath their
feet the long-desired land of Oregon ; that portion
of the vineyard alloted them for cultivation. Filled
-with joy they retired a short distance from the place
^here the caravan was resting on the bosom of a
beautiful prairie, and there fell on their knees, em-
braced the soil, took possession of it, dedicated and-
consecrated their persons, soul and body, to whatever
God would be pleased to require of them for the
glory of His holy Name, the propagation of His king-
dom and the fulfillment of His will, The caravan
Joyfully reached Big Bend towards the evening. The .
fact of finding there but two boats instead of four re-
•q.uired, greatly checked the joy of all. The Captain
of the expedition decided that one third of the party
should remain until the rest having reached the House
of the Lakes one cf the boats would return to their
relief.

The following day (October 14th 1838) being Sun-
day, it was on that day that the Holy Sacrifice of'
Mass was offered for the first time in Oregon at Big
jBend, on the banks of the dangerous and perilous
Columbia. At this great act of religion, performed
hj Rev. M. Demerg, the two Missionaries being much

/

CATHOLIC CHURCH IN OREGON. 31

moved, consecrated themselves to the Queen of
Angels imploring her special protection for the rest
of the voyage. The boats being laden and ready,,
and the last prayer made on the shore, the two Mis»%
ionaries shook hands with their dear companions
whom, alas ! they were to see no more, and started
at 1 p. m., on the turbulent waters, of the upper
Columbia. The range of mountains lowering, as it
-were, amphitbeatrically, continues from Big Bend to
the lakes. The days are short in so deeply embanked
a river w^hich runs fifteen miles an hour, in a success-
ion of rapids or rather cascades. The distance fronx
Big Bend to the House of the Lakes is 165 miles
which were run in ten hours : two hours on the 14th^
six on the 15th, and two on the 16th of October.

The rapid of the Dalles of the Dead is a narrow
channel turning nearly at right angles on the left
rocky high bank. The boats must keep close to the
point of the left bank in order to avoid being rushed
into the infuriate waves. That dangerous rapid was
run down safely on the 15th, the boats being light
with baggage and passengers and well managed by
eight men, six at the oars, one at the stern, the other
at the prow with long and large paddles used as rud-^
ders.

Eighteen days at the House or the Lakes : First Miss-
ionary Labors in Oregon. Loss of Twelve Lives.

The boats were no sooner arrived at the House of
the Lakes, that one of them was unloaded and sent
back to the relief of the party left behind. The

32 SKETCHES OF THE

House of the Lakes being still in construction, tlie
Missionaries encamped as usual under their tents.
The first week was spent in prayer, celebration of the
Mass, teaching the Indians, singing canticles and
evening exercises. The Indians of the Lakes soon
came to visit the Priests, anxious as they were to see
and hear the black gowns so often spoken of by the
Canadians. They were found to be of a mild, peace-
able character and well disposed to receive the words
of salvation. They being the first sheep of the vast
fold entrusted to their care, the Missionaries took
pleasure in instructing them, speaking of God, of
the Creation, of the fall of Angels and man, and of
the Kedemption by the Son of God. The Indians
listened with attention, assisting at Mass with awe r
and before the return of the boat, they brought theii*
children, (17) to be baptized, regretting not to have
the same happiness to make their hearts good. It
was painful to the Missionaries to leave them unbap-
tized.

When the day on which the boat was expected had
passed without its arrival, a gloomy presentiment be-
gan to seize the hearts of all. It increased in intens-
ity the following day. At last, on the 24th at the
conclusion of Mass, a boat appeared afar off, half
broken, coming in mourning, without the usual joy-
ful chant at arriving. The men were hardly able to
move their oars. As the boat approached all ran to
the shore. At the sight of so few men, women and
children, a heart-rending spectacle took place ; an
indescribable scene of desolation and shedding of
tears began; cries and piercing lamentations were

CATHOLIC CHURCH IN OREGON. 33

long heard and echoed by the neighboring moun-
tains. For, alas ! the boat had capsized, and out of
twenty-six souls, twelve had perished. At Big Bend,
the boat was found too much embarrassed with bag-
gage ; room was hardly left for passengers. At the
dangerous Dalles, all went ashore with only a portion
of the baggage. The boat started, struck a rock, filled,
but was brought on shore. Having been emptied
and reloaded, the fur packages left in the bottom
having got wet, rendered the boat heavier. The
passengers embarked with the greatest repugnance.
On the next rapid the boat filled up again. Then
commenced a scene of desolation and dread with cries
and screaming of women and children. The pilot
commanded all to remain still, as they were approach-
ing the shore. But Mr. Wallace, an English botan-
ist, pulled off his coat, stood up, put one foot on the
side of the boat and leaped into the water with his
young wife ; the boat lost its balance and upset,
and of twenty-six persons struggling in the water,
twelve lost their lives, Wallace and his wife in the
number. Some reached the shore, others were saved
on the keel of the boat which fortunately fastened
itself on a rock three or four feet deep at the head of
a rapid. This calamity happened in the dusk of
the evening. The body of a child was found caught
under the boat. Sad, long and excruciating was
the night. The next day, the boat having been re
paired, the survivors continued their sorrowful jour-
ney.

OP THE

34 sketches of the

Missionary Labors at Colville, O'Kanagan and
Walla Walla.

As soon as the ill-fated boat had arrived,an Indian
xjanoe was dispatched to Colville for a boat and pro-
visions, which had become so scarce as to threaten
starvation and oblige each to receive a daily allow-
ance. The repaired boat was sent the following day
to the scene of desolation, to look for, and bring
down the dead bodies of the lost friends. It brought
down but the bodies of three children to whom were
rgiven a solemn Christian burial. Wooden crosses
^ere blessed and placed over their graves.

The express boat which had left for Colville on
the 16th had returned; the one sent for by an Indian
express had also arrived with provisions : there were
then two good boats. All being ready, and the mis-
sionaries bidding adieu to the good Indians of the
lakes, the caravan left on November 3d., the House of
the Lakes where the last ten days of sojourning had
been so soiTowful, and reached Colville on the 6th.
The express boat had announced the coming of the
JBlackgowns ; the news had spread like lightning,
thence the gathering there of the Chiefs of five na-
tions. As soon as they saw the boats coming they
rushed to the shore and placing themselves in file,
men, women and children, they begged to touch the
liands of the priests, which ceremony took a long
time. A large house having been placed at their
disposal, they used it to assemble the Indians in,
:and gave them all the instruction they could, du-
ring the short time of four days they remained at
this posfc.

CATHOLIC CHURCH IN OREGON. 35

Having baptized nineteen persons and celebrated
Mass before the Chiefs and their people, who assisted
at the sacred mysteries as if already fervent chris-
tians, the missionaries left Colville on November the
10th and reached Fort O'Kanagan on the 13th, after
having passed through many dangerous rapids, daUes
and portages. During the twenty-four hours they
remained at this post, they had occasion to be con-
vinced that the Indians who frequented it needed only
to learn what is required in order to become good
christians. Fourteen baptisms were made, and one
Mass celebrated at this Fort. Leaving Fort O'Kana-
gan on November 14th they reached Fort Walla
Walla (now Wallula) on Sunday morning, the 18th.
During the twenty-four hours they remained at this
post they had three baptisms, celebrated one Mass,
and were visited by the Walla Walla and Cayuse
Indians, who, having heard by the express of the
coming of the priests, had come to see and hear them
on their passage, notwithstanding the contrary
orders of the Head of the Wailatpu mission. Holy
^Mass was celebrated before the Indians who assisted
at it struck with amazement. In so short a time the
priests could give them but a short explanation of
the most necessary truths for salvation.

As this is the closing chapter descriptive of the trip
of the missionaries across the plains, and as our reci-
tal hereafter will be mainly devoted to events and
incidents which transpired during the residence of
the missionaries in the Northwest, we think it de-
sirable to insert the following interesting letter of His

36 SKETCHES OF THE

Grace Most Rev. Francis Norbert Blanchet, then
Vicar General, to the Archbishop of Quebec, de-
scribing in detail the daily incidents of the journey
across the plains and the arrival of the missionaries
at Vancouver.

Letter of Yicar (General Blanchet to His liOr^lf^Siii) Joseplt Sig-
nay, ArcliMshop of Quebec, giving an accoiint of the Jour-
ney of the Missionaries to Oregon.

Fort Vancouver, March 17th, 1839.

My Lord: It is for me a very sweet and agreeable task,
to send to your Lordship news from the two Missionaries
whom, in your zeal for the ^alvation of the souls entrusted
to your pastoral solicitude, you have sent to Oregon, to
cultivate the vineyard of the Lord. After numerous hard-
ships and fatigues, dangers by land and water, in our journey
across the continent, we have the pleasure, Rev. Demers
and I, to announce, with love and gratitude towards God
and the Blessed Virgin Mary, that we have reached happily
the end of our voyage, yet not without losing twelve of our
companions, drowned in the Columbia river. Please join
in our thanksgivings to God for the protection and cares of
his Divine Providence for us. As soon as we arrived, w^e
went to work. The field is vast, our occupations are nu-
merous, I have scarcely time to write. But I know with
what anxiety and interest your Lordship is expecting some
notes regarding our journey, the country, the labors besfun
and the hopes given by the Oregon Mission. May the in-
formation I am going to give, satisfy your expectation and
fill the ardent desires which you incessantly feel for our
flock.

I will begin with an account of my trip from Lachine to
Eed Piver (St. Bonifacius), where I had to stop to receive
the orders of Mgr. Provencher, Bishop of Juliopolis, and to
take along with me Pev. Demers, my travelling companion,
already there since a year. I left Montreal, Thursday,
May 3rd 1838. The 700 leagues from that city to Red
river were traveled in 33 daj^s, having arrived there on the
6th day of June, on one of the Honorable Hudson Bay
Go's canoes, commanded by Mr. Hargrave, chief trader.
The loaded canons which* started some days after the light
onQs, with a number of famiUes, arrived three weeks after.

CATHOLIC CHURCH IN OREGON. 37

Ever^^one knows how dangerous this mode of travelling is.
To spend days and often nights in an uncomfortable posi-
tion; to undergo the inclemency of seasons, the gusts of
wind and the torrential rains; to run dovvn numberless
rapids at the peril of one's life; or to travel on foot long
portages through forests, rocks and ponds; to camp out in
cold and damp places; to devour in haste a scanty meal,
badly prepared; to stop at the different posts, inhabited by
white people and visited by Indians, but for the adminis-
tration of the sacraments, the visitation of the sick and
the exhortation of the poor sinners ; such is, my Lord,
the life of the Missionaries on their way to the far West.

For eight days w^e went up, Mr. Hargrave and I, the
Ottawa river. We left it and went up another river to its
source. That took us a whole day. After that came a
portage, three miles in length, where is the heigth of the
lands dividing the waters of the Ottawa from those flowing
into lake Winnipeg. At the end of the portage, w^e came
down a little river in one day. We were then on lake Win-
nipeg, which we crossed in twenty-four hours. Walking
next a little portage, we began to go down the French river,
through w4iich lake Winnipeg discharges its waters into
lake Huron ; that also took us a whole day. The crossing
of lake Huron to Sault St. Marie, lasted three days. From
thence to Fort William on lake Superior, six days and a half.
Leaving lake Superior, w^e ascended for three days, the
Taministigouia river, up to a portage nine miles long, which
is the height of land and divides the waters running into
lake Superior from those flowing into lake Winnipeg and
thence into the Hudson bay. After that long march, we
embarked, near its source, on the river Des Emharras
which flows into the Mille Lacs. We crossed the latter and
also Lake Lapluie before reaching the Fort of the same
name. Our journey from the height of lands to this post had
lasted five days. It took us three days to go down the river
I^apluie, two days to cross the Lac des Bois, three days to
go down the Winnipeg, one day to cross lake Winnipeg,
and another day to ascend Red river up to St. Bonifacius,
residence of the Bishop of Juliopolis.

Our Canadian and Iroquois travelling companions were
exhausted. Mr. Hargrave no less than I, and that for
good reasons. For, very often, we would leave our camp at
one in the morning and encamp only at about 7 or 8 in the
evening. Many times we were exposed to great dangers.

38 SKETCHES OF THE

in the middle of lakes, or in coming down or going up
rapids. The current used to set adrift our canoe on hidden
rocks, and once our small bark canoe was nearly dashed to
pieces on one of these hidden rocks. The mournful crossefi
to be seen above and below the rapids, are a sign of the
dangers these places afford.

According to' my calculation of the hours of travelling, I
counted from Lachine to Matawan, 115 leagues on the
Ottawa ; hence to Sault St. Marie, 134 ; on lake Superior
140 ; from Fort William to the height of lands, 56 ; hence
to lake Lapluie fort, 98 ; thence to fort Alexander, down
the Winnipeg river, 120; and at last, from that place to
St. Bonifacius, between 35 and 37 ; total 700 leagues,
traveled in four hundred and eighty-eight hours or 33 days
of forced marches.

At the extremity of Lake Lapluie^ I met the worthy mis-
sionary of the Santeux, Rev. M. Belcourt, who was then
visiting the camps of that nation. I crossed lake Winnipeg
on the 5th of June, and on the 6th I arrived at St. Bonifacius
where I met Bishop Provencher, Rev. Thibeault and Rev.
Demers, appointed to the mission of Oregon. Rev. Poire,
missionary in the White Horse Prairie^ came two days
after. Rev. Belcourt returned from his mission on the
14th. The 18th Rev. Poire left to accompany a caravan of
800 or 900 w^agons going on a buffalo hunt. It w^as only
after his return that this gentleman went to Canada with
Mr. Belcourt. Rev. Mayrand arrived on the 22nd.

It is easier to feel than to express the joys and emotions,
the souvenirs and hopes caused by^ the meeting of those
zealous laborers in the vineyard of the Lord. This w^as the
most numerous gathering of priests ever witnessed by the
inhabitants of these remote regions. The mustard-seed was
beginning to appear as a vigorous tree, already shadowing
a multitude of souls drawn from the darkness of idolatry and
transplanted in the kingdom of God; precious fruits of the
evangelical zeal animating these missionaries. Happy
prognostics of a still richer harvest to be gathered.

Having spent five weeks in visiting all the missions of
Red river, we started, Rev. Demers and I, on the ]Oth of
July for our destination, after having sang a High Mass in
honor of St. Ann, to ask from God the benediction of heaven
on our journey; for we had to penetrate into a country
never yet visited by a Catholic priest. The rivers, lakes,
mountains, prairies, forests and hills of Oregon would soon

CATHOLIC CHURCH IN OREGON. 39

resound with the praises of the Holy Name of Jesus ; the
cross would be planted from place to place, from shore to
shore, on a space of one thousand leagues which we had
yet to travel, and the w^ord of Him who said that that sign
would attract all to Him in the person of these poor wan-
dering sheep to which we were sent. What a joy ! What a
tiweet consolation for missionaries !

Frorn St. Bonifacius we went, in seven days of dangerous
navigation, to Norway House, a small fortress, 130 leagues
distant from our starting point, and ten leagues from lake
Winnipeg. The commanding chief Factor had the kindness
to give us for lodging and chapel the apartments destined
for the Governor of the company. We spent there eight
<iays, celebrating Holy Mass, distributing catechisims, bap-
tizing the children and some adults, instructing and exhort-
ing the whites and Indians of the Fort. We also performed
two marriages there. On Saturday, the 22nd, there was a
high mass, vespers and two sermons, to w^hich some of the
gejitlemen and clerks of the company assisted. During this
brief stay of eight days, many small bands of travelers came
from York Factory, on Hudson's Bay, to Norway House,
from whence they w^ere all to start together to cross the
mountains.

The 26th of July, everything was ready. The brigade
assembled and began to march under the command of John
Rowand Esq., Chief Factor of the Company, a Catholic,
whose attention, kindness and constant efforts to alleviate
the fatigues and privations of the route, we wiU never forget.
The brigade consisted of ten boats laden with merchandise,
a great number of hired men, women and children. Among
the travelers were Messrs. Banks and Wallace, botanists,
sent from England by a scientific society.

Having passed the head of lake Winnipeg, the river
Saskatchewan, or St. Peter, which we had to ascend for 37
days, appeared with the Grand rapid that requires a portage
of everything. We crossed the lakes de Travers, Bourbon,
Cedres and Vases, On Sunday, August 15th, we reached
the little fort Constant, built on the right shore. We had
travelled 93 leagues with oar, perch, sail and line, having
been often obliged, at the principal rapids, to unload our
boats. We had baptized on the way a child who died an
hour later. Having, that day, sang high Mass in the
presence of the Cris Indians of the neighborhood who
appeared very well disposed to receive the seed of the Word

40 SKETCHES OF THE

of God, we started light away, and arrived on the 7th at
Fort Cumberland on the lake of the same name, 36 leagues
from fort Constant, and on the 18th at fort Carleton, 88
leagues from the last. There we performed 36 baptisms
and 7 marriages. Among those baptized were the comman-
der of the post, Mr. Patrick Small's family, composed of
eight persons, of whom three were adults. At fort Pitt, %1
leagues farther, we had eleven baptisms, and at fort Edmun-
ton, also called Prairie fort, we had 39 baptisms, of which 5
w^re adults, and 3 marriages.

This last fort, whither we arrived on the 6th of September,
is 101 leagues distant from fort Pitt, amidst the Cris. It
would be quite fit to become a station for a missionary who
would understand these Indians' language. Meanwhile, a
priest could, in good weather, go on horseback across the
prairies, from Eed river to fort Carleton in 15 days, hence
to fort Edmunton in 12 days, allowing time to stop at every
fort along the road. His visit would do a great deal of good
to the employees and to the poor Indians, with whom they
trade in furs. On the 29th of September, we had at fort
Edmunton, a solemn Mass and Veepers and two sermons.
On the 10th, before leaving, we blessed and planted a cross.
This we did all along the road, wherever w^e had said Mass,
either near the forts or on the shore or in the interior along
the road.

For six weeks we had followed the crooked course of the
Saskatchewan. We had then to quit it and to change our
small fleet for a caravan of 66 horses, in order to reach, by
land, across forests, ponds, prairies, rivers, ditches and beaver
dams. Fort Assiniboine on the Athabasca, a distance of
34 leagues, which required five days of fatiguing and dan-
gerous walking. On September 16lh., we|eft Fort Assini-
boine and began to struggle against the rapids and dangers
of the Athabasca, which we ascended for 17 days* On the
28th, we s^w for the first time the imposing forms of the
Rocky Mountains, the highest summits of which are per-
petually covered with snow. On tke 2nd of October, we
had come as far as Jasper's house, 4 leagues inside th%
Rocky Mountains, and were then 92 leagues from fort As-
siniboine. There were there 35 baptisms, for the greatest
part children of half breeds, or free people, living in the
woods as Indians and hunting the beaver. Holy Mass was
celebrated on the opposite side of the river, far from the
noise of Jasper's.

CATHOLIC CHURCH IN OREGON. 4l

The Athabasca being no longer navigable, we changed, on
the 5th, our boats for a caravan of 72 horses, a great deal
worse and more imperfect than iho^Q oi Edmunfon, These
animals were easily frightened and throwing off horseman
and baggage they would either start for the woods or run
into ponds or mud holes. The organization was difficult
and the departure slow. We went along the right shore of
the river which, running in zigzags in a valley well timbered
and bordered with high mountains, produced high and long
points that we had to cross straight over, in order to short-
en the distance. We had to cross channels, forests and
sand bars : we traveled along side of a lake at the head of
which is the Prairie Campment, where we halted. We
were three leagues from Jasper's house and had come there
in four hours.

On the 6th we had to cross forests of thick woods and to
climb up hills and rocks dix)ping into the water. We had
to pass on the side of these hills whence the eye sees with
awe the yawning abyss. Woe to the rider whose horse would
miss a single step ! After having climbed very high rocks
and traveled 4 leagues in 3J hours we camped opposite the
rock called the Old Man,

On the 7th, after two hours of march over a nice little
prairie, lightly covered with wood, on a level ground, we
took breakfast in a fine prairie. We then went up and
down 12 or 13 hills and rocks covered with wood. We
crossed four little rivers, the Camp of the Cow^ pretty
groves of ligVit wood and beautiful willows. Having walked
7 leagues in 7J hours, we camped near the South fork or
branch of the Athabasca^ in a place covered with burnt
trees.

On the 8th, the luggage and people w^ere carried over,
in a canoe w^iich had been brought so far with infinite
pains and labor from Jasper's. The horses swam across.
This branch of the river was a real torrent, 45 steps or
yards wide. The Southwestern branch is but 30 feet wide,
we had to cross it on horseback from its right shore at a
place called The Hole where the horses lost footing for 18
feet. The baggage and horsemen did not get wet ; as to
those who w^ere on foot, they had to swim, holding the lag-
gage or the horse's tail. Proceeding now along the shore,
then on the top of high rocks, we met with many obstacles
offered by high rocks, thick timber and fallen trees. A
hill appeared; in order to facilitate its steep ascension, we

42 SKETCHES OF THE

got up it in zigzags. We had to dismount our horses in a
place where the hoi-ses had to jump and cHmh. From the
top of this hill appeared the most enchanting scenery. Our
sight rested with pleasure on a large valley bordered with
forests raising their heads up to one fourth of the mountain-
ous height. In the middle of tlus valley, we could see the
river, with its thousand turns and as many points or hills
produced by its course. It was a magnificent and enchant-
ing spectacle which caused our hearts to raise to God, and
which we were sorry to leave. We quitted the river, crossed
several hills and groves and again reached the river. We
came to the Moose Prairie, where a nice waterfall, sevel-al
hundred teet high, falls from the top of the- mountains into
the river. The road had been bad and dangerous that day.
The 5 leagues which the light cavalry had run in 6 J hours,
were travelled in two hours more by the loaded animals.

On the 9th, we crossed new points and high hills before
reaching the first grand beach two miles wide, covered
with nice stones, bordered with mountains, and in the midst
of which the river seemed to play, making a thousand turns
from one slope of the mountains to the other. We crossed
a second beach through whicli the river flowed in like man-
ner. That day we had to cross it 25 times in order to short-
en the distance. "We saw many glaciers in the mountain
passes, went through many a snow bank and also saw a
waterfall as considerable as the fii-st. It was the Barrel
Fall, We halted at the Gun Camp, surrounded with high
peaks white with snow. We had travelled, that day, 8
leagues in seven hours.

On the 10th, being at IJ leagues fn^m the top of the
Rocky Mountains, at 3 o'clock in the morning, I celebrated
under a tent, the august sacrifice of the Immaculate Lamb
in thanksgiving for all the benefits the Lord had bestowed
upon us, and to consecrate by the sacrifice of the Cross
these sublime mountains, to the glory of their Creator, the
all-powerful God, of whom they sing the praise and power.
Having walked with much fatigue 2J hours, across ponds,
rocks, fiillen trees and other obstacles, on the slope of moun-
tains, along side of the narrow but swift torrent, we came,
by a steep way to the gorge or pass half a league wide, be-
tween the two mountain ranges. Brown and Hooker, whose
grand summit perpetually covered with snow, arise some
17 or 18,000 feet above the level of the sea. This pass
pretty steep in its central slope, is covered on both sides

CATHOLIC CHURCH IN OREGON. 43-

with masses of rock fallen from the abrupt mountains,
whilst other rocks, suspended above, seem to threaten
the frightened traveller.

Half way in the gorge is a round lake called Punch
Bowl, It is thirty yards in diameter. Its waters com-
municate, underground, with two other lateral lakes,
wherein originate two rivulets : one is the source of the
East branch of the Athabasca, the other is the source of the
Portage river in the West. These two rivers are supplied
by a great many streams from the mountains ; so little at
first they soon become impracticable torrents, rolling their
w^aters with an extraordinary noise. There, at Punch
Boivl, we were but one league and a half from our morn-
ing camp, and it had taken us two hours and a half to trav-
el this short distance. We were 27J leagues from Jasper's^
700 leagues from St. Bonifacius and 1,400 from Montreal.
One may judge, thereby of the obstacles encountered in that
clay, without speaking "^of the obstacles and dangers met
with for six days on the Eastern slope, in the ascent and
descent of hills, rocks and heights, from Jasper's. We
still walked one mile and a half in two hours, going down
the Western slope, much steeper than the Eastern one ;
and going over rocks, fragments of rocks, and trees
along the Portage river. We halted a short distance from
La Grande Cote, a great steep hill we had to descend, and
whither our loaded horses arrived but two hours after
those of the light cavalr3^ They were tired and unable to
go any further.

On the 11th, the (rrea^^^^YZ appeared with its long circuits
in zigzags, to facilitate the steepness of its descent. We
descended it in three hours; the first part on horseback, the
second on foot, and the third part on horseback again; after
which the caravan rested for some hours on a beautiful
bush-prairie; the first portion of the large field we were sent
to cultivate. We took possession of it, and consecrated our
selves to its cultivation. We crossed the Portage river eight
times. Thus we made 4 leagues in 5} hours.

On the next day, our riding horses walked two leagues in
4 J hours through the mud holes of the great timber Point ;
it took the laden animals eight hours to make that distance
because they had to be unloaded and loaded again, every
now and then.

On the 18th, the travelling w^as easier and more agreeable.
Having walked for six hours and crossed several points of

44 SKETCHES OF THB

woods and hills, we reached Boat encampment on t^e
right shore of the Columbia and Portage river, some dis-
tance below its junction with the Canoe river flowing from
the North. We had come down the West slope of the
mountains in 3 days. vVe were ISJ leagues from Punch
Bowl J 41 from Jasper's, 45 from the entrance of the Rocky
Mountains of which the range seems to continue up to the
head of the lakes, 5-5 leagues further below.

The Columbia has its source 50 leagues on the South.
From the BoaVs eJicamjoment, it abruptly turns to the
West, hence the name of "Big Bend" is given to this curve.
It then flows Southwest down to the Spokane river, below
Colville ; then Northwest to Okanagan ; thence Southwest
to Wallula ; thence West to Vancouver ; thence Northwest
to Cowlitz ; thence West to the Pacific Ocean. This rapid
river about 60 yards wide at Big Bend, which rolls its swol-
len waters amidst numberless dangers^ and was to offer us
in its rapids, its whirlpools, its dalles, its falls, its abyses, a
thousand more dangers than all the rivers we had yet navi-
gated, was now before us. We had now to encounter its
dangers ; and we were ready to meet them.

On the 14th, it being a Sunday, the Holy Sacrifice of Mass
was celebrated to consecrate us to the Queen of Angels and
beg her to take us under her protection. It was the first
Mass celebrated on the territory of our mission. At \\ p.
m., the boats were loaded, the prayers having been said on
the shore, we shook hands with our travelling companions
whom we quitted, alas ! never to meet again and we began
to sail. Having travelled 10 leagues in SJ hours, we camped
in the middle of the rocks, and towards dusk went down
some bad places to choose a better site.

On the 15th, the grand and famous Dalles of the Dead
appeared ; it seems to be but 20 yards wide. What makes
it dangerous is the curved form or elbow of high perpendic-
ular rocks against which the whole body of water rushes.
Hence the fury of the waves and the necessity to pass close
by the opposite shore. Here we had to leave the boats to
carry off every thing. The barge is then conducted by
eight men, six at the oars, and one at each extremity as
pilots with long and wide paddles. In that way the D alles
of the Dead was passed without much danger. The ittle
Dalles below, 30 yards wide were also fortunately run down
with loaded boats. We also w^ent through 3 big rapids and
30 smaller ones, besides a strong continuous current and

CATHOLIC CHURCH IN OREGON. 45

abysses which threaten the unskillfal travelers. My barge
broke open in the morning, during the fog, on a hidden
rock, which put us into great danger. My companion
w^as in the other barge. The river which from the Barges
encampment, looks as a canal cut through the moun-
tains, began to flow, towards evening, in a less mountainous
country. In this canal the horizon always appears on a
level with the top of the trees of the following rapids, and
the high walls of rock, now crowned with forests, and then
beautiful rows of willows, terminate at every rapid by a fall,
or kind of step making a real amphitheatre. It is a grand,
magnificent and delighting sight, but the dangers offered by
the canal prevented our enjoying it. On that day we had
traveled 40 leagues.

On Tuesday, the 16th, having made 5 leagues in 21 hours,
we reached, at 8 J a. m., the House of the Lakes. Two
hours after, one of our boats went back to the Barges
eneamijment to fetch down the third of our companions we
had left there for want of room. The other boat started for
Vancouver with the express. It took 6 days to the first to
go up the ^b leagues, which separated us from them; she
arrived there on the 21st. Next day, she started down, got
filled with water at the Dalles of the Dead, was emptied,
but again filled in the following Dalle: she was going ashore
when some one, jumping in the water, upset her. Plence
the loss of 12 persons out of the 26 who mounted her. It
was about dusk when this calamity occurred. The broken
barge went on her way the following day and arrived on the
24th in the morning at our camp. Great was the conster-
nation at this new^s : an express was sent to Colville for a
boat and some proTlsions. The other one was repaired and
w^ent back to the unfortunate spot to bring the drowned
bodies dow^n. That accident detained us 18 daj^s at the
House of the Lakes, This time was spent in instructing
the Indians, who appeared quite do(;ile and well disposed,
they were sorry not to have the same happiness as their
children, to be baptized.

At last on the 3rd of November, having performed 17
baptisms, one marriage, and buried three drowned children
the only bodies found, at the foot of a cross erected a few
steps from our camp where we celebrated Holy Mass, every
day,^ we embarked in two boats, upon the waters still keep-
ing in their bosom nine of our companions. We crossed
the first lake, 13 leagues long, and one wide. Then came

46 SKETCHES OE THE

the second lake 18 leagues by 2 miles. Below the lakes
on the left, is the Koutenais river which appeared to be 300
feet wide ; and four hours distance below, the Flathead
river falling into the Columbia through a beautiful fall and
only 60 yards wide. The ninth rapid below the lakes forms
the little Dalles where the water passes through a canal 100
feet wide between high rocks of basaltic columns. We
can say that the Rocky Mountains extend as fiir as the
lakes. Below that point they are more scarce and less ele-
vated. The day before we arrived at Fort Colville, the
want of timber — which abounded to the Great Dalles —
began to be noticeable.

After having travelled 3 days to make 72 leagues, we
reached, on the forenoon of the 6th, Fort Colville where we
remained 3J days, occupied in celebrating Holy Mass and
in instructing the Indians of five nations who assisted with
as much respect as if they had been fervent Christians.
Having performed 19 baptisms, we left that fort on the 10th,
and went to camp two miles below in order to avoid the
Chaudieres fall, which stops navigation at that place.

On the 11th in the morning, we were travelling upon the
Columbia which appeared full of dangers. The grand rap-
id appeared, 20 others followed. On the 12th, we passed
the fork of the Spokanes, on the left shore and that of the
Simpoils on the right. On the 13th, we reached Fort
Okanagan, situated on the right shore, 64 leagues from
Colville. We had travelled that distance in three days,
passing through innumerable rapids, at the most dangerous
of which the people had to land in order to lighten the
boats.

We started again on the 14th, after having baptized 14
persons, celebrated Mass and instructed the neighboring
Indians during the 24 hours of our stay at the fort. The
little river Okanagan appeared right away. We jumped
12 rapids on that day. On the next day, the 15th, a rapid
was formed by the Rock Islands. The passengers went
ashore, and yet it did not prevent the boat carrying our
vestments, striking a rock and breaking in coming down a
cascade. She was filling with water as she approached the
shore. On the loth, we saw, at a height of 100 feet in the
fissure of a rock, a petrified tree. Whilst jumping the four
big rapids of the Priest, our boat struck on the bottom but
did not break. Below these rapids, the high and moun-
tainous shores of the river give place to low and levelled

CATHOLIC CHURCH IN OREGON. 47

prairies over which the sight can extend with ease. On
that very day, we enjoyed a spectacle of which we had been
deprived since we left Winnipeg, that was the sunset. The
remainder of this day and also the next, we sailed on quiet
waters. ^ The low shores gave us a chance to see the Blue
Mountains, South of Walla Walla (Wallula) and those that
go to Puget Sound or Mount Rainier. We left behind us,
on the right, the Yakima river, and below, and on the left,
the Snake River, also called Lewis and Clark, which ap-
peard to be 500 feet wide.

On Sunday, the 18th, we arrived early in the morning at
Fort Walla Walla, built on the left bank of the Columbia,
a short distance from the river of that name. Peter Chry-
sologue Pambrun, Esq., in charge of that important Fort, a
Catholic, received the two Missionaries with the greatest
cordiality. He was born in the parish of Vaudreuil, district
of Montreal, Canada, and was formerly Lieutenant in the
Voltigeurs Canadians, His ex<3ellent wife was, at the
time at Fort Vancouver with her little girls, Maria, aged 12,
Eda 3, and Harriet 16 months ; and the boys Andrew Dom-
inick, 17, Peter Chrysologue, 15. The girls were baptized
with their mother on December 18, and the father had his
marriage blessed on the same day. It was a beautiful and
happy day for me.

The Holy Sacrifice of the Mass was celebrated, after
which the chiefs of the Cay uses and Walla Wallas came with
their people to see the priests. The Cay uses were divided
into two tribes ; one of which — on the Walla Walla river —
known as Wailatpu, formed the Presbyterian mission, es-
tablished by Dr. Whitman in 1836. The other camp, lying
on the Umatilla river, 30 miles hence, was under the com-
mand of the j^oung chief Tomatoe. The day was passed in
speaking to them of God and religion. They were so glad
to see the Blackgoivns so long expected. There were three
baptisms made at this place, and on a subsequent visit by
Rev. M. Demers, the young chief brought his child to be
baptized by the priest, Mr. Pambrun having consented 'to
be its godfather which gained for him great blame and dis-
pleasure from the Doctor. Since that time the young chief
and his band always p^-eferred the priest's prayers before
that of the minister.

On Monday, the 19th, we left Fort Walla Walla, with its
excellent commander. The httle river Walla Walla, on
the left, was followed by the Umatilla on the same side.

48 SKETCHES OF THE

Seven leagues below the Fort, we leaped the Grand Rapid
without accident. From thence, we began to see the white
summit of Mount Hood, whose base is the Cascades range.
On this day, the 20th, our provisions becoming short, two
horses were purchased for food, for which the Indians were
paid $10 a piece. The Columbia being pretty low at this
season of the year, our two boats touched the ground in
descending the seventh rapid on that day. We left the lit-
tle river John Day on the left.

On Wednesday, the 21st, we saw the Des Chutes river,
on the same side, and we approached it on the right side by
a narrow channel, with great precaution, on account of the
proximity of the falls. Here, we had a long portage of
boats and baggage, for a mile. The task was made more
difficult by a glazed frost. The Indians of this place, who
appeared very poor and destitute, came to the assistance of
the men, but not without having been earnestly and incess-
antly begged a while. That portage took us four hours.
The Petites Dalles, (Little Dalles), so called by the first
French Canadian voyageurs, are about half an hour's march
from Des Chutes, We passed them without accident, they
are a mile long and about 250 feet wide, walled on both
sides, with basaltic columns, with projecting points and
recesses, which form a canal, or dalle, through which the
stream moved with the swiftness of a dart. The danger had
been nul so far, but it came on after crossing the Dalles)
for our boat being caught by the current of a whirlpool was
carried close to a rock, wh^!re, had it struck and broken '
it would soon have sunk.

One league further down we found the Grandes Dalles,
60 called by the French Canadian voyageurs, and Wascopum
by the Indians. Here the Columbia is intercepted by a
chain of solid rocks, through which, (wonderful to say and
see) the strong mass of w^aters have opened a channel to
themselves. The Orandes Dalles are four miles long,
impracticeable in the high water of May and June, and
passable in the low waters of the Fall; but even then, not
without a discharge of person and baggage for the two first
miles. The first part is a canal of about 150 feet wdde,
walled with basaltic columns of about 50 feet high, ending
w^ith a platform of about 30 feet broad, terminating with
other basaltic columns of 60 feet. Daring the high water
the swollen Columbia passes over the platform. In the low
waters it only runs through the lower channel; projecting

CATHOLIC CHURCH IN OKEaON. 49

points and recesses in the walls, form waves and whirlpools
very dangerous, even for light boats managed by eight men,
six afe the oars, and of the two others, one at the stern, and
the other at the prow, with long and large paddles, used as
rudders; nevertheless, they are never passed without dread.
The two first miles were run in ten minutes. During the
middle waters the whirlpools are very dangerous ; I was told
that several years ago a boat was caught by one of them,
which soon disappeared in its large and deep funnel. After
crossing the Grandes DciLLes we saw on the left, the build-
ings of the Methodist missions for the Indians, established
in 1837.

On Thursday, the 22nd., we passed the Great Rock of
the Dead. From the Dalles to the Cascades our navagatioa
was quiet and pleasant, on the smooth water of the Colum-
bia, bordered on both sides with picturesque mountains.
On Friday the 23rd., we reached the Cascades which stops
the navagation for four miles, and requires the portage of
the baggage. But they are far from being what their name
indicates, a series of cascades ; for the two first miles, they are
simply a big rapid passing between the contracted banks of
the river, followed by a swift current, a wavering water
along the shore of the river, on the left, while the un-
loaded boats can be brought down with a line along the
shore of the right bank for the first two miles ; then, partly
laden, they ran the last two miles with oai*s. We
reached the Upper Cascades with great care, and early
enough before noon to make the long portage on the same
day, and encamp at the Lower Cascades. On Saturday
the 24th., we went on with sail and oars; we left on our
right the high rock called Cape Horn, by the travelers, on
account of wind and storm often prevailing there. We
passed many islands, and when approaching Fort Vancouver
the boats went ashore to allow the travelers to make their
toilets, and soon after we were at the end of our long journey,
at 5 p. m.

We experienced cold from Colville to the Grandles
Dalles. It was so severe, some days, as to form ice on the
oars of the men. Some evenings we found the ground cov-
ered with 3 or 4 inches of snow which we had to remove to
pitch our tents. Some nights the cold was 9 degrees of
Keaumur. Such nights as we passed under a tent at some
distance from a scanty fire, on account of the scaroity^ of
driftwood to be found on the shore, were far from being

50 SKETCHES OF THE

pleasant. At Deschutes portage, the ground was covered
with a hard glazed frost.

The ecclesiastical soutane or cassock of priests, whicVi is
the type of the seamless coat of Christ and of His Chcrch,
and the glorious habit of the clergy of Canada, was w^orn
by us all the time during our long journey from Canada to
Oregon, and since our arrival, it was, then, easy for the
Canadians t(> recognize their priests and the Indians the
Blackgowns announced to them. This practice we will
continue to observe, at home and abroad.

At Fort Vancouver, we were 40 leagues from the ocean ;
20 from the Cascades ; 40 from the Dalles ; 145 from
Okanagan ; 209 from Colville ; 287 from the House of
the Lakes ; 342 from Big Bend and 355 from Punch Bowl.

In closing this long letter, I beg to be allowed to refer
your Lordship to a general report of our reception at Fort
Vancouver and our Missionary labors." Please bless your
two Missionaries in the great far West, their flock and their
labors, and accept the homage of the sentiments of venera-
tion with which

I have the honor to be. My Lord,

of your Lordship,
the most humble and obedient servant,
F. ]Sr, BLANCHET, V. G.

ARRIVAL AND Reception of the Missionaries at Fort
Vancouver.

The two missionaries being anxious to reach the
destination of their long and arduous journey, the
brigade started from Fort Walla Walla, (now Wal-
lula) on Monday morning, November lOtli., reach-
ing Fort Vancouver on the following Saturday after
a week's slow and tedious descent of the Columbia
river. The same distance is now travelled l)y steam-
boats in two days.

When the flotilla appeared in sight, as it made its

CATHOLIC CHURCH

way down the Columbia, all was excitement at the
Fort, where news had already been received of the
calamity which had occurred to the party and the
consequent loss of life. All the populace rushed to
the river bank in order to feast their eyes on the first
Catholic missionaries whose presence they had long
expected. Prominent among the assembly stood
James Douglas, who was acting Chief Factor and
Governor of the establishments of the Hudson Bay
Co. west of the Kocky Mountains, in the absence of
Dr. John McLoughlin who was then absent on a
visit to Canada and England. He was the first to
welcome the missionaries to the scene of their future
labors. Conducting them to the Fort, where the
flag was flying in honor of their arrival, the Governor
ushered them to apartments prepared for them, ap-
pointc'] a servant to wait on them, and in every way
manifested his hospitality and his delight at their
arrival.

No sooner had the missionaries reached the Fort
than they were waited upon by Joseph Gervais, Eti-
enne Lucier, and Pierre Beleque a delegation repre-
senting the Canadians of the Wallamette valley, who,
having heard that the missionaries were coming,
had left their homes in a body in order to greet the
long-looked for Catholic missionaries on their arrival
at Vancouver, but nearly all had been obliged to re-
turn home in consequence of the delayed arrival of
the'missionaries through the disaster at the Dalle of
the Bead,

Leaving the missionaries located at Vancouver,
there to return thanks to God for having preserved

bZ SKETCHES OF THE

them through their long and arduous journey, let us
glean from contemporaneous history a sketch of Fort
Vancouver as it then existed. We copy from ''The
Oregon Territory" by Rev. C. G. Mcolay, and issued
in London in 1846. Describing the Forts of the
Hudson Bay Company that writer says : —

Of all the Forts, Vancouver is now the principal ; here
Dr. M'Loughlin, the governor of the territory, resides, and
here is the principal depot of the Company, in which all
the goods brought from England and furs collected in the
interior are warehoused ; it is indeed the emporium of
trade from Kamschatka to California.

The fort is in shape a parallelogram, about two hundred
and fifty yards long by a hundred and fifty broad, enclosed
by a sort of wooden wall, made of pickets or large beams
firmly fixed in the ground, and closely fitted together, twen-
ty feet high, and strongly secured on the inside by but-
tresses ; the area is cultivated, and surrounded by houses
and ofiices, the governor's residence being in the centre :
there is a chapel and school. The officers of the Company
dine together in the common hall, the governor presiding ;
but it has been remarked, that the absence of their wives
and the females of the establishment from the table does
not contribute to the refinement of manners. There is also
a public "batchelors' hall," where after dinner the time is
passed in conversation and smoking, but the latter is said
to be declining as a habit. The hospitality of Fort Van-
couver and its governor has been highly praised, especially
by American writers, it should seem not without good rea-
son ; and the general feeling of regret at leaving the society
it affords speaks much in praise of the officers of the Com-
pany, not less than the good cheer of the governor.

Beyond the fort are large granaries and storehouses ; and
before it, on the bank of the river, is the village in which
the servants of the Company reside; in all, the residents
may be seven hundred. In the village is an hospital.

Attached to Fort Vancouver is a magnificent farm, of
more than three thousand acres ; saw-mils cutting many
hundred thousand feet per annum ; grist mills, and every
other requisite for commerce and agriculture. Vessels of
fourteen feet draught can come abreast of it at low water
(says Lieutenant Wilkes), and at the store of the Company

CATHOLIC CHURCH IN OREGON. 53

eveiy necessary can l)e supplied as cheap as in the United
States ; this however must be taken with considerable lim-
itation, and refers probably to the English goods in par-
ticular. From hence the Company carries on a lucrative
trade with California, the Sandwich Islands, and the Rus-
sian settlements, besides its exports to England.

The Company's servants are principally Scotch and Ca-
nadians, but there is also a great number of half-breeds,
children of the Company's servants and Indian women.
These are generally a well featured race, ingenious, ath-
letic, and remarkably good horsemen ; the men make ex-
cellent trappers, and the women, who frequently marry
officers of the Company, make clever, faithiul, and atten-
tive wives; they are ingenious needlewomen, and good
managers. They frequently attend their husbands on their
trading excursions, in which thii^^ are most useful ; they
retain some pecuharities of their Indian ancestors, among
which is the not unfrequent use of the mocassin, though
usually it is made of ornamented cloth, instead of deer skin.
The approach to this the principal establishment of the
Hudson's Bay Company in the west gives the stranger a
high idea of its prosperity and importance; the thickly
peopled village, the highly cultivated fields, the absence of
all guards and defences, the guns of the fort having long
since been dismounted, the civilized appearance of its in-
terior, and the activity and energy which prevails, — the
noble river, here seventeen hundred yards wide, on which
perhaps some of the Company's vessels, brigs, or steamers,
well appointed, manned, and armed, are at anchor, and
these are heightened in the effect by the magnificent sce-
nery by which it is surrounded ; the noble woods flanking
the mighty stream, and backed by lofty mountains, the
snow-covered peaks of Mount Hood and Mount St. Helens
towering over all ; while the wild flowers and fruits in their
season carpet the ground in wild luxuriance.

This fort was established by Governor Simpson in 1824,
and its present importance justified his selection of its site.
Here is, and doubtless will continue, the chief trade of
Western America, until the increasing demands of com-
merce and national industry transport it to the shores of
Juan de Fuca Straits and Admiralty Inlet ; yet even then,
as the only naval and mercantile station in South Oregon,
and as receiving the trade of all branches of the Columbia,
and having immediate and rapid connection with Puget's

54 sketches' of the

Sound by the Cowelitz and Nisqually, and with Gray's
Harbour by the Cbikelis— thus connecting the great fresh-
water with the great salt-water navigation ; the Columbia
with the Strait of Fuca — it will occupy only the second
place. Sir H. Pelly, in his letter to Lord Glenelg, in 1837,
gives this account of the state of the Company : — The Com-
pany now occupy the country between the Rocky Moun-
tains and the Pacific by six permanent establishments on
the coast, sixteen in the interior country, besides several
migratory and hunting parties, and they maintain a ma-
rine of six armed vessels and a steam vessel on the coast.
Their principal establishment and depot for the trade of the
xoast and interior is situated ninety miles from the Pacific,
on the northern bank « >f the Columbia, and called Van-
couver, in honor of that celebrated navigator ; in the
neighborhood they have large pasture and grain farms,
affording most abundantly every species of agricultural
produce, and maintaining large herds of stock of every de-
scription : These have been gradually established, and it is
the intention of the Company still further not only to aug-
ment and increase them, and to establish an export trade in
wool, tallow, hides, and other things, but to encourage the
settlement of their retired servants and the immigrants
under their protection ; and he asserts further, that the
soil, climate, and other circumstances of the country, are
as much, if not more adapted to agricultural purposes than
any other spot in America.

Iiiterestiug Letter from Rev. jWodesee I><'«ui>, to Stev. V, F.
Cazeaii, Sec'ly, 4|uel>ec.

Vancouver, Oregon, March 1st, 1839.
Rev. Dear Sir :

When I was appointed to the mission of Ore-
gon in 1837, together with the Very Rev. Father Blan-
CHET, the passage of the missionaries from Montreal to
Fort Vancouver, a* toss the American continent and in the
canoes of the Hon. ^ Hudson Bay Company, met obstacles
which prevented their immediate departure.

Bishop Provencher, who stood in need of a missionary,
secured a passage for me to Red River. This was two thou-
sand one hundred miles saved in m}^ journey to Oregon. I
was afraid, however, that when I should have acquired a

CATHOLIC CHURCH IN OREGON. 55

knowledge of the language of the Santemtx, I would not
be allowed to proceed on my journey if an opportunity pre-
sented itself; but Divine Providence took all difficulties
out of the way, for as socm as the missionaries for Oregon
had obtained a passage, Bishop Provencher allowed me to
proceed, and I had the happiness of meeting with the Very
Eev. Father BLxiNciiET on Red River in 1838, on his pas-
sage to Oregon. Leaving to the Vicar General the recital
of the tales of his trip from St. Boniface to Fort Vancouver,
I will give you an account of my ministry : For the last
three months this Fort has, with the Canadians and Indians
here, occupied all my time. I have found here some con-
solation, God has given me the grace to learn the Chinook
language in a short time. It. is in this jargon that I in-
struct the women and children of the white settlers, and
the savages who come to see me from far and near. I am
so busy from morning till night that I can scarcely find
time to write the following concerning the savages who are
settled on the west of the Rocky Mountains. I would ask
therefore, all your indulgence ; as I merely passed through
the different Indian tribes scattered along tlie Columbia
from the Rocky mountains to the Pacific Ocean, the fol-
lowing sketch must of necessity be very imperfect; I hope
however, it will be sufficient to make known to you those
divers tribes, under the most interesting aspect — that of
religion. My recent arrival in this country and the mul-
tiplicity of my occupations do not permit me to give more
than a faint sketch. Unwilling as I am to expose m^^self to
the danger of giving false impressions and wrong informa-
tion, I will wait until I may have acquired a more
thorough kno'wledge of those unknown tribes.

Lake House.

The first savages we saw are called the Lake Indians,
These first of the large fold committed to our care corre-
spond well to the description given us of them by the Cana-
dians, who had been for some time telling them of their
own chiefs — the black robes — and had given them the hope
that some of them would arrive and give them a knowledge
of the Master of life, He who made them, "Kaekouten
tshouten.'' We can easily imagine with what joy they re-
ceived those chiefs for whom they had been so long waiting.
F®r seventeen days we remained at the House of the Lakes
and labored in this new vineyard, which promised from the

56 SKETCHES OF THE

very beginning of oar visit to bear abundant fruit. After
the first instruction on God and his attributes, on the Cre-
ation, the fall of Adam and the necessity of baptism, those
who had little children hastened to bring them for baptism,
to have their hearts made good. They regretted that they
themselves could not receive the same happiness. These
Indians desire nothing more than to know God and the re-
ligion that leads to Him : They anxiously long for the mo-
ment when a priest may come among them to teach them
the holy truths and maxims of our divine religion. It was
not without grief that these poor people saw the missionaries
leave them ; and on our part we were not indifferent to the
expression of their warm affection. ^'Quomod audient
Sine prcedicante . ' '

COLVILLE.

In this fort we saw Indians belonging to five different
tribes, who had come from the neighborhood to meet us.
A barge which had preceeded us down the river, had brought
them the news that the long expected chiefs were coming.
Hardly could they perceive the barge in which we w^re,
than they all, men, ^vomen and children, hastened to the
shore with joy depicted in their countenances, to bid us
welcome. It was not without emotion we saw this dem-
onstration of their gratification. We had to tear ourselves
away from them, to accompany the commandant to the
fort. The chiefs of the Chaiidieres, Cinpoils, SpoJcan^
P/s/roowsand of the Okanagaa with some of their people,
received such instruction as our time would allow us to give
them. All gathered together in a large house given to
them for the occasion and waited in silence for the moment
when we should speak to them. With what attentive
eagerness they listened to the Word of God, which being
translated to them by the chiefs, acquired a new force and
an additional weight. We forgot nothing that was calcula-
ted to fortify them in the principles of the Catholic religion;
thus, in a short time, we have scattered some of the seed of
the divine word, and we have the sweet hope, that accord-
ing to God's merciful designs it will bear fruit in this por-
tion of the human family so long neglected. We easily can
see what progress Christianity would make among tribes so
well disposed, h\xi fides ex audltu.

The five tribes mentioned above, the Lake [ndians and
the Flat Heads, of whom we shall speak later, speak Ian-

CATHOLIC CHURCH I A OREGON. 57

guages so similar that they readil}^ understand each other ;
it would be enough to know one of these languages to
speak all. The Lake Indians and the Chaiidieres are the
most numerous of all.

Okanagan.
During the twenty-four hours that we remained at this
post w^e became acquainted with the Indians who frequented
it ; they are tolerably numerous. We may say of them
what we have said of those mentioned ab(;ve ; to make fer-
vent Christians of them it would suffice to teach them the
Christian doctrine. Nothing more is needed. Between
Okanagan and Walla Walla we have seen only a few In-
dian huts. For want of interpreters we could hardly make
ourselves understood.

Walla Walla.

Some of the chiefs of the Cayuse tribe had come together
at this post to see the chiefs of the French (Canadians).
All over, the same zeal and the same eagerness to know
God, the same joy and satisfaction in seeing the black robes
of whom they had heard so much. Without being Chris-
tians, they firmly believe the truths of the religion Ave ex-
plained to them by the w^ay. They speak the language of
the Nez Perces which is altogether different from that of the
Chaudieres and of the Flat Heads ; they can converse with
those of Walla Walla whose language is spoken as far as
Des Chutes. Somewhat below are the Dalles Indians, who
can speak with those of Des Chutes and of the Cascades,
twenty miles distant from Vancouver. A great many of
the Indians speak the Chinook jargon of which there will
be mention later,

Vancouver.
The Chinook Indians are scattered along the Columbia
river from this fort down to the Pacific Ocean. Before the
year 1830 they w^ere the most numerous tribe inhabiting the
banks of this river. This rendered them proud and
haughty. Beside this, they were rich : but about this time
came the disastrous malady known by the name of fever-
and-ague which carried a great many to their graves. In
the heat of the fever they would leap into the river in the
hope of relieving them of their suffering, but they found
death as quick as it w^as cei'tain. It was found necessary
to burn a whole village where the dead bodies were piled

58 SKETCHES OF THE

one upon another ; for the survivors were not capable of
burying their dead. This calamity which God sent these
Indians on account of their abominable lives, came to visit
them every year, and always made some of them its victims.
We are told they reformed their lives, except those who
live near the fort, who are wdcked and demoralized on ac-
count of their communication with the whites. They make
a shameful traffic in crime ; they have female slaves whom
they hire at a price to the first who asks them. They have
seen us and see us yet with an indifference that makes us
regret the good Indians of the Upper river; but the part of
the tribe situated not far from fort George, (now Astoria)
down the river, is not as depraved, which gives us the hope
of being able to Christianize them, with the assistance of
Him who wills that no one should perish, but that all
should come to the truth. At the very momcnit I write
this, I learn that their chief, with a great many of his men,
hasjust arrived to see the French priests. A few days ago
he had sent deputies to know whether they would instruct
his Indians.

The real language of the Chinook is almost unlearnable ;
it differs entirely from that of all the neighboring tribes ;
but they speak the jargon aJso, which is used as the medium
between the Canadians and the w'hites in general and the
Indians who are settled near the fort. The jargon is com-
posed of words taken from different languages, disfigured in
their orthography and pronunciation. It is all borrowed
from different languages which makes it easy to acquire.
It possesses only from four hundred to five hundred words.
It has no participle : One and the same word has several
meanings. For instance : Wawa, means to speak, to tell,
to answer, to ask : Komtaks, means to know, to learn, to
comprehend, to hear, to think and to believe ; thus, by
adding Nawitika, certainly; we have, Nawitika Naika
kamtax Sahaletaye, I believe in God : hence it follows
that it is not easy to translate French expressions into it.
We have to use paraphrases. For the last month^ I know
this jargon sufficiently well to give instruction and' to teach
the Catechism without being obliged to write them down.
I have translated the Sign of the Cross and the way to give
one's heart to God. I cannot send the translation of the
other prayers, as they are not quite finished. A good many
of the Cascade Indians who understand this jargon, and
some of the Klickatats, attend the catechism and evening

CA'rHOLIC CHUIUJH IN OREGON. 59

prayers. In order to impreiss deeper upon their memory the
truths contained in the Apostles' Creed, I have tried to
arrange it to a certain air. The Indians love music very
much ; they know nearly by heart the Canticles that vvere
sung at the Mass on Sunday last. I expect to learn the
Klickatat language, which will be of great use ininstrui.^ting
this tribe and those of Des Chutes and of the Cascades, who
understand it well. The greatest difficulty in learning the
language spoken on this side of the mountahis, consists in
the pronunciation which is such, that we are many times
at a loss to find characters to represent it, as in Sahaletaye,
God, hihkty one. Time does i.ot allow me to expatiate on
this matter.

The Indians of Cov/litz.'''
The Indians of Cowlitz love with r^verenc^ the mission-
aries who are established among them. They have a lan-
guage of their own, different from that of the Chinook In-
dians. They also speak jargon. They are tolerably nu-
merous but poor. They give us hopes of their conversion.
After the visit of the Vicar General, they said to the settlers
of Cowhtz : "The priests are going to stay with us ; we are
poor, and have nothing to give them : Tktkoiciam riesa/lUt
ivaik ekita nesaika: We want to do something for
them, we will work, make fences, and whatever they wish
us to do." Several of them came to see the missionaries at
Vancouver, and expressed the most ardent desire to have
them come and remain with them.

Wallamette Indians.
The Vicar General who passed a ra<mth among the
Canadians established on this river, could not speak highly
of the Indians he had seen— the /ra/«{poo/a5. They were
very numerous before the fevers, but are -now reduced to a
small number, which keeps decreasing every day. They
are poor and lazy; thieving may be considered as their pre-
dominant passion. They wish to keep away from the mis-
sionaries as much as the Cowlitz Indians wish to be near
them. Hardly any of them were seen by the Vicar General
at the chapel assisting at the instruction. But it seems we
might succeed better among the different tribes c»f this na-
tion who are settled on the tributaries of the Upper Wal-

*Cow'litz is a corruption of the original Indian word Co-wil4tZ
nsed by the early settlprs.

60 SKETCHES OF THE

lametle. From these they take their different names.
I learn that there are fourteen or fifteen different dialects
spoken by these tribes ; they are not so essentially different
but that they can understand each other. Moreover, the
Chinook jarfijon is spoken among the Kalapooias.

Northern Indians.

In fort Okanagan we had information of a great many
Indiana who are settled at a great distance from the Eocky
Mountains, toward the north. Some Canadians, i)i the
service of the Hon . Hudson Bay Co., in those quarters,
told us that priests would do well among them, although
they are not civilized as those of the Columbia. We will let
them know the object of our arrival in this country, but we
cannot send word to them before next summer.

The Nez Percez tribe is very numerous. They are mostly
settled on large prairies, not far from the mountains towards
the north. The Canadians who live among them for the
purpose of obtaining the beaver fur, have for a Iom time
spoken to them of the black robes — the chiefs of the French.
Naturally good, mild, and lull of respect for the prayer to
the Master of life, they anxiously desire that priests may
come to instruct them, and make known to them the re-
ligion of the French. They have even imagined that they
could buy one, and have enquired of the Canadians how
many horses and beavers it would take to have one stay
with them, saying, that **he would want for nothing, and
that the best of the spoils of the chase would be given to
him.'' Good discipline and morals reign among them.
May we not here exclaim with the Saviour of the world :
3fessis quidem multay operarii autem pauci. What can
two naissionaries do among so many tribes but desire that
the Lord may send missionary priests to show them the
way to heaven, for which they had been created, and to
tell them that their souls are the price of the blocnl of the
Saviour. Rogate ergo dominum niessis iff mittat opera-
rlos in messern suam.

Receive, Eev. Dear Sir,

The assurance of my esteem,

M. DEMERS,
Missiona ry Priest of (>reg< )n .

catholic church in oregon. 6l

First Mass at Fort Yancouvp:r. Condition of the
Country.

November 25tli., 1838, was beautiful as a summer
clay. It being Sunday, preparations were made in
the school house for the celebration of the first Mass
ever said in lower Oregon. The building was too
small to contain the crowd composed of the gentle-
men, ladies and Catholics of the outside camp. A
solemn High Mass of thanksgiving was sung by the
Yicar General who gave an instruction suitable for
the occasion. Vespers also were chanted in the af-
ternoon. The divine service of that day was moving,
even to tears, as many of the Canadians had nOi
heard Mass for ten, fifteen and even twenty years.
That day was one for them that would never be for-
gotten. They saw at last that they had priests
among them, to instruct themselves, their wives and
their children, to administer to them the sacraments
and give them at the last and awful hour the conso-
lations of the Holy Church. In all this they felt
happy : and giving thanks to God, they were willing
and ready to obey their ]3astors faithfully.

It may be well to take a view of the country in re-
lation to the Indian tribes, the servants of the Hud-
son Bay Co. and Catholic and Protestant settlers, in
order to have a correct idea of the condition of things
in the mission entrusted to their care. Their mission
extended from California (42^^) to the Northern gla-
cial sea, between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky
Mountains. The Indian tribes were numerous, scat-
tered all over the country, speaking a multitude of
divers and difficult tongues, and addicted to polygamy

62 SKETCHES OF THE

and all the vices of paganism. The servants of the
H. B. Co. in active service in its 28 forts for fur
trade, were in great majority Catholics ; so also v^ere
the four families settled in Cowlitz, and the 26 estab-
lished in the Wallamette valley, with their wives
and children. Many of the servants and settlers had
forgotten their prayers and the religious principles
they had received in their youth. The women they
had taken for their wives were pagans, or baptized
without sufficient knowledge. Their children were
raised in ignorance. One may well imagine that in
many places, disorders, rudeness of morals and
indecency of practiceB, answered to that state of
ignorance.

There were also found in the valley of the Wal-
lamette some Protesto.nt settlers, and in different
parts of the country about 30 Protestant ministers,
with their numerous attendants, their wives and their
children. The MethoHlip.ts had two missions, one in
the Wallamette valley, a::d the other at the Dalles.
The Presbyterians were established at Wailatpu
among the Walla Wallag, at Lapwai among the Nez
Perces., and on the Spokan river. Besides these, the
H. B. Co. had its own chaplain at Vancouver for two
years. These ministers v/ere zealous, making efforts
and using all means posBible to gain converts to
their sects.

As to the Catholic settlers and their families, al-
though considerably numerous, they were not only
without any minister of their faith to teach them and
their families the Catholic doctrine, but were more-
/over exposed to the most seducing temptations of

CATHOLIC CHIFKCII IT^ OREGON. 03

perversion: for, if on the one hand, they were de-
prived of all the means necessary to practice the
worship commanded by their faith and claimed by
conscience, on the other hand, the practice of their
separated brethren and the exhortations of the min-
isters, were immediately at hand, as no pains
were spared and nothing neglected to induce them
to join the sects.

Rev. Mr. Beaver, who arrived from England at
Fort Vancouver as a chaplain, in 1836, was anxious
to bring the Catholics of the fort to his Sunday ser-
vice ; but he was checked by the good Dr. McLaugh-
lin; nevertheless, he renewed his efforts after the Dr.
left for England. And strange to say, a report came
later that a list containing the names of Catholics
begging Mr. Beaver to attend them, had appeared
in one of the newspapers in London. No doubt
this was a forged trick: but it is certain that he
joined with the Methodists in saying : * 'No need of
priests; I suffice here, and the Methodists in the
Wallamette valley.'' As for the Methodist ministers
we have seen before, they were visiting the French
settlers, had succeeded in bringing some of them to
their Sunday meetings, baptized some women and
performed marriages. This being so, one may under-
stand why the grant of passage by the H. B. Co. met
with so much opposition. The first request of the
Bishop of JuliopoUs w^as refused. On a second ap-
plication it was granted for two priests in the canoes
of 1837, but was aftei-wards withdrawn, for the rea-
son, no doubt, of not favoring an establishment on a
foreign ground, but also in order to give the Pro-

64 SKETCHES OF THE

testant ministers more time to strengthen their posi-
tion and to make proselytes. Hence, of the two
missionaries appointed to start in 1837, only one was
allowed to reach Rtd River that same year. Such
was the situation of the country in 1838. Neverthe-
less, in spite of all combinations and obstacles,
the two Catholic missionaries, ' ' Deo juvante" arrived
safe, and were lodged in the room which Mr. Beaver
and lady had left three weeks before for England.

From the foregoing, it is easy to understand what
the Missionaries had to do. They were to warn
their flock against the dangers of seduction, to de-
stroy the false impression already received, to len-
lighten and confirm the faith of the wavering and
deceived consciences, to bring back to the practice of
religion and virtue all who had forsaken them for
long years; or who, raised in infidelity, had never
known nor practiced any of them. They were to
teach the men their duties, the women and children
their prayers and catechism, to baptize them, bless
their unions, and establish good order and holiness
of life everywhere. In a word, they were to run
after the sheep when they were in danger. Thence
their passing so often from one post to another — for
neither the white people nor the Indians claimed
their assistance in vain. And it was enough for
them to hear that some false prophet had penetrated
into a place, or intended visiting some locality, to
induce the Missionaries to go there immediately,
to defend the faith and prevent error from propaga-
ting itself.

In the mean time let no one imagine that all this

CATHOLIC CHURCH IN OREGON. 65

was effected by encliantment; no, on the contrary,
they had to make many journeys, and had to undergo
much pain and patience in order to caution the flock
against the dangers of seduction and error, to en-
lighten the ignorant, to recall wavering consciences,
and bring back to the true fold the lost sheep. One
may well understand what time and pains were re-
quired to come so far and that after having succeed-
ed, it would not have been prudent to abandon them
too soon to themselves. This said, let us now follow
the two Missionaries in their undertaking.

Missions to various places and among the Indians in
1838 AND 1839.

Mission at Vancouver. — The Mission at this post
lasted four months 'and twenty days, (from Nov. 24,
1838 to April 15, 1839) without interruption, attend-
ed by the two missionaries, save nine days spent by
the Vicar G-eneral, on a visit to Cowlitz, and 34 for his
going to and giving the mission at Wallamette. The
Catholics of the place did not remain indifferent to
the favor afforded them to have the promises of the
Apostolic labors of the two priests ; they faithfully
corresponded to the grace. The Missionaries took
but two days to rest from their long and tedious
journey, for, the fourth and fifth day after their ar-
rival saw them at work; the first, in favor of the serv-
ants and their families, the second, in favor of the
ladies and their children of the Fort. On Monday
the 26th, they were invited by the Goveritor to make
a visit to the stores and depots of the Company in

OF THE

66 SKETCHES OF THE

the Fort, of the clerk's office, houses of the Bour-
geois, the clerks and their families. On Tuesday, he
accompanied them on their visit to the village, which
lies next to the Fort and contains the houses of the
servants and their families. The census made, gave
76 Catholics, Canadians and Iroquois. They especial-
ly took the names of the men and women who were
to be separated before being married. The Indian
population on the shore of the Columbia and neigh-
borhood was supposed to be 300 souls.

The holy ministry began for the men and their
families, on Tuesday evening by gathering them in
the Fort, on that day and henceforth, in regular
meetings, in which, after the evening prayer, made
in common, a pious reading was made and some sa-
cred songs were sung in French ; a practice which
continued and was kept with the greatest satisfaction;
in consequence of which the whole assembly was
soon instructed to sing the first couplet of 50 Cantic-
les, the men forming one choir, and the women, girls
and children the other ; each choir singing alter-
nately after the 1st, 2nd, 3rd, &c., couplet sung by
the solus. These meetings became so attractive as
to draw, on many occasions, the Bourgeois, clerks
and their families to enjoy the pleasant and harmoni-
ous concerts. The Indians themselves did not re-
main insensible to the chaims of these chants, nor
where they the last to come and hear them in large
number, sometimes 70 and 100. On Feb. 20th,
1839, there were 140 assisting at the evening prayer.

The holy work began for the ladies and little girls
of the Fort on Wednesday, the 28th, by teaching

CATHOLIC CHURCH IX OREGON. 67

them their prayers and catechism in French. By
persevering in this holy work, many of them soon be-
came able to say the Rosary, a holy practice of de-
votion in honor of the Immaculate Mother of God,
which the two missionaries established in Oregon
from the beginning. Rev. M. Demers, who made
the beads, distributed fifty of them in a short time.
The catechism was held in the forenoon.

The afternoon was reserved for teaching the pray-
ers and holy truths to the Indian women and chil-
dren of the village, in order to prepare them for
baptism. The difficulty here was great, as they had
to learn these prayers in French, and the task could
not be completed but by a long and tedious repetition
of them for weeks and months. This catechism was
frequented by sixty women and girls, and eighteen
little boys.

The Indians were not neglected; they were gath-
ered twice a day, in the forenoon and in the evening.
Rev. M. Demers, who had learned the Chinook Jar-
gon in three or four weeks, was their teacher. Later,
in January, having translated the Sign of the Cross
the LorcVs Prayer and Hail Mary, into that idiom,
he taught them to these poor Indians, who were
much pleased to learn them. In February, he suc-
ceeded in composing some beautiful canticles in the
same dialect which the Indians, as well as the men,
women and children, chanted in the Church with the
greatest delight. Thus by patience and constancy in
teaching, the Missionaries were pleased to see that
their hard labors were beginning to bear some fruits.

The forenoon catechism lasted generally from 8 to

68 SKETCHES OF THE

llj o'clock; tlie afternoon one from 1 to 5, and some-
times 6 o'clock. The interval was interspersed with
singing Chinook canticles, teaching catechism, and
some relaxation. While Kev. M. Demers was in-
structing the Indians, the Vicar General taught the
Canadians, and gave instruction in French to the
boys who were able to read English, so that by such
means, some of them were soon able to 'assist in
teaching the prayers and catechism to others. The
Gregorian chant and serving at mass were not for-
gotten; and it was after these exercises that the mis-
sionaries heard the confessions of those who had no
time to come during the day. By all this it may be
seen that the two priests were far from being idle.

Remark ABLE Conversion or Dr. John McLaughlin,

It is but just to make special mention of the im-
portant services which Dr. John McLaughlin — though
not a Catholic — has rendered to the French Canadi-
ans and their families, during the fourteen years he
was governor of Fort Vancouver. He it was who
read to them the prayers on Sunday. Besides the
English school kept for the children of the bourgeois,
he had a separate one maintained at his own expense,
in which prayers and the catechism were taught in
French to the Catholic women and children on Sun-
days and week days, by his orders. He also encour-
aged the chant of the canticles in which he was
assisted by his wife and daughter, who took much
pleasure in this exercise. He visited and examined
his school once a week, which was already formed of
several good scholars, who soon learned to read

CATHOLIC CHURCH IN OREGON. 69

French and became of great help to the priests. He
it was, who saved the Catholics of the Fort and their
children from the dangers of perv^ersion, and who,
finding the log church the Canadians had built, a
few miles below Fairfield in 1836, not properly loca-
ted, ordered it to be removed, and rebuilt on a large
prairie, its present beautiful site.

To that excellent man was our holy religion in-
debted for whatever morality the Missionaries found
at Vancouver, as well as for the welfare and temporal
advantages the settlers of the Cowlitz and Wallamette
valley enjoyed at that time. At the time the two
missionaries arrived Dr. McLaughlin was absent, but
was expected to return in the following September.

The good work of that upright man deserved a
reward; he received it by being brought to the true
Church in the following manner. When he was once
on a visit to Fort Nesqualy, '*The End of Contro-
versy," written by Dr. Milner, fell into his hands. He
read it with avidity, and was overcome and converted
at once. On his return to Fort Vancouver, he made
his abjuration and profession of faith at the hands of
the Vicar General, on Nov. 18th, 1842. He made his
confession and had his marriage blessed on the same
day; and prepared himself for his first communion
by fasting during the fi)ur weeks of Advent, which
he passed on his claim at the ''Wallamette Falls,"
now called Oregon City, in having the place sur.
veyed into blocks and lots. Being thus prepared, he
made his first communion at Fort Vancouver, at mid-
dight mass on Christmas, with a large number of the
faithful women and servants of the Hudson Bay Co.

70 SKETCHES OF THE

Tiie little cliapel was then full of white people and
Indians; it was beautifully decorated and brilliantly
illuminated; the plcwi chant was grave, the chant of
canticles of Noel, in French and Chinook jargon,
alternately by the two choirs of men and women, was
impressive; as well as the holy performance .around
the altar; in a word, it was captivating and elevating to
the minds of the faithful, commemorating the
great day of the birth of our Saviour. It was on such
an occasion that Hon. Peter H. Burnett, being at Van-
couver in 1843, and attending High Mass as a specta-
tor, at midnight on Christmas, received the first im-
pression of his conversion, as mentioned in the pre-
face of his book under the title of ''The Path whick
led a Protestant Lawyer to the Catholic Church.''

From the time of his conversion till his death Dr.
John McLaughlin shovved himself a true and practi-
cal christian, and a worthy member of the holy
Church; never missing the divine service of Mass and
vespers on Sundays and holy days; going to the
holy table nearly monthly, and preaching strongly
by word and example. On going to church each
Sunday he was often accompanied by some Protes-
tant friends; one of them inviting him to go and
assist at the service of their church, he answered him:
^'No sir, I go to the church that teaches truth, but
not to a church that teaches error.'' He was kind to
his children and grandchildren, his son-in-law fol-
lowing his example.

He was born in the district of Quebec, Canada,
and died at his residence at Oregon City on Sept. 3d.
1857, aged 73 years; fortified with all the consola-

CA'^HOLIC CHURCH IN OREGON. 71

tions of the Church, after a lingering illness of two
years, which he bore with christian patience and
resignation, about three months before the return of
Archbishop Blanchet from South America in 1847.

Dr. John McLaughlin was the father of the orphans
and servants of the H. B. Co.; the father of the
French-Canadian colonies of Cowlitz and Wallamette
valley; of all the American immigrants, and a great
benefactor of the Catholic Church. In hearing of
this great man, the Holy Father, Pope Gregory XVI.
sent him the insignia of the knights of the distin-
guished order of St. Gregory the Great, which Arch-
bishop Blanchet delivered him on his return from
Europe in August, 1857.

Missionary Labors at Fort Vancouver.

After the arrival of the priests, the Lord's day had
been sanctified by regular public services, consisting
of a high mass with an instruction in the forenoon,
and vespers and Sunday school in the afternoon : th^
chant at mass and vespers was the Gregorian, for
some of the men were already able to sing the Kyrie,
Gloria, Sanctus, and Agnus Dei, or were soon able
to do so. The chant of canticles in French by the
choirs of men and w^omen, as aforesaid, added not a
little to the solemnity of the service. The large
building granted for the purpose was generally full
of Catholics, among whom were often seen a number
cf non-Catholics.

As to the Protestant service on Sunday, which was
the Episcopal one, it was held in the large hall
of the Governor's house and read by him. The

72 SKETCHES OF THE

American ministers who travelled pretty often and
were always lodged and politely treated by the Gov-
ernor and other Bourgeois, were seldom or never in-
vited to hold the Episcopalian service on Sunday.
Their singing with their wives in their rooms late in
the evenings, on many occasions, w^as the means of
drawing some of the ladies and children to hear
them.

Christmas Day, which in 1838 came on a Tuesday,
and being observed as a general holiday by the Com-
pany, the men had a chance to celebrate it. There
were two low masses at midnight in the room of the
priests at which some assisted. The high mass,
vespers and instruction took place as usual on Sun-
day. The music which accompanied the Gregorian
chant at mass, and that of the canticles at vespers in
place of the anthems after the Psalms, rendered the
office of Christmas more solemn than usual; so that
all returned home well pleased and contented.

As the Company used to send over the Eocky
Mountains in the beginning of March every year, an
express to carry its papers to Canada, the Missionaries
availed themselves of the opportunity to send to
Quebec the histoiy of their journey from Lachine to
Vancouver, wdth an account of their labors during
the journey and since their arrival, an item of which,
extending to March 1st 1839 was; Baptisms, 309,
Marriages, 61, Sepultures, 9. Out of the 309 bap-
tisms, 175 were made on the journey and 134 since
their arrival. Out of the 175, 122 were made on the
east and 53 on the west side of the Rocky Mountains.
Oat of 134, 74 were from the Wallamette, 53

CATHOLIC CHURCH I!^ OREGON. 73

from Yancouver, and 7 from Cowlitz. Of the 61
marriages, 25 were from the Wallamette, 24 from
Vancouver, and 12 from the east of the Rocky
Mountains.

First Yisit to Cowlitz Mission.

According to an agreement made between the
Bishop of Juliopolis and Sir George Simpson, Gov-
ernor of the Hudson Bay Co., the principal station
of the Catholic Missionaries was being fixed at the
settlement of Cowlitz river, because it was not, like
the Wallamette settlement, on a ground whose
ownership was disputed by Great Britain and the
United States. To the end, therefore, to show his
willingness to carry out that agreement, and order
the building necessary for a residence, the Vicar
General accompanied by Augustin Eochon, a ser-
vant brought from Canada, left Vancouver on Wed-
nesday afternoon, December 12th, 1838, in a canoe
paddled by four Indians, and reached the Cowlitz
settlement on Sunday, the 16th, at 10 a. m. The first
mass ever celebrated at that place was said on that
day, and another one on Monday in the house of Mr.
Simon Plamondon, before the settlers and their
families, who were much pleased to learn that the
I)riests were to reside aitiong them. Having visited
the place and chosen for the mission a piece of land
of clear prairie of 640 acres, strewed only with some
rare borders of timber, he left his servant there to
square the timber for a house and barn, and to make
rails for fences.

The Cowlitz settlement has been five years in ex-
istence. It is on the west side of the river, in a

74 SKETCHES OF THE

prairie, six miles long and two miles broad, bounded
on the east by the river, and on the west by a large
quantity of timber. It is a very fine location for a
colony. Its soil is rich and fertile; grass, fishing,
and game are in abundance. The situation is beauti-
ful: in the northwest appears Mount Eainier, and
Mt. St. Helen on the east, whose high peak is always
covered with snow. The Hudson Bay Co. has a
farm there on which a large number of men are em-
ployed in farming on a large scale. The young col-
ony was then composed of only four Canadian far-
mers, whom Dr. McLaughlin had discharged from
further long services. The Cowlitz river runs from
north to south and empties into the Columbia; it is
very tortuous and full of snags, which renders its
navigation difficult and dangerous, especially for
small craft, and by reason of its numerous rapids of
dangerous ascent.

Having made seven baptisms, given to the men the
necessary advices, and recommended Mr. Fagnant,
one of the farmers, who was able to read, to teach
the prayers and catechism to the women and chil-
dren, the Vicar General left on Tuesday morning,
the 18th, and reached Vancouver on Thursday, the
20th, at 4 30 p. m. Governor Douglas had the po-
liteness to go and meet him on the shore with Kev.
M, Demers, on his arrival. On his way up and down
he visited some Indian lodges to announce to them
the arrival of the liIackgow7is who come to speak of
the Great Spirit and make them good.

First Mission to the Wallamette Valley.

This mission lasted about thirty days; from Jan-

CATHOLIC CHURCH IN OREGON. 75

uary 5th 3839 to February 4th. This valley takes its
name from the river which flows through it from
south to north. It is a continuance of large and
level prairies strewed with timber which is found speci-
ally along the banks of the streams. The east shore
of it may well be called the granary of Oregon, the
western shore being generally mountainous. The
settlement of this valley began as follows : There re-
mained in the country three Canadians, remnants of
the old expedition of Hunt and Astor, viz: Etienne
Lucier, one of the former, and Joseph Gervais and
Louis Labonte of the latter. Etienne Lucier being
tired of living a wandering life began in 1829 to cul-
tivate the land near Fort Vancouver, and getting dis-
satisfied with his first choice, he left it in 1830, and,
removing to the Wallamette valley, settled a few
miles above Champoeg, then, called by the Canadians
^'Campement de Sable." Following his example the
two others, Joseph Gervais and Louis Labonte fol-
lowed him in 1831 and settled some distance south
of him, one on the right and the other on the left side
of the river. Some old servants of the Hudson Bay
Co., being discharged from further services, went over
to them and increased their number. The good and
generous Dr. McLaughlin encouraged the colony
and helped it all in his power. It continued to grow
up every year, and its settlers began to feel the ne-
cessity of having some priests to reconcile them to
God, and also to instruct their wives and children.
The nearest bishop they could apply to was at Ked
River. They sent him a petition in 1834, asking for
priests. Their request was without success, so they

76 SKETCHES OF THE

renewed their petition in 1835, and this time it seem-
ed they were to be heard, for the Bishop of Juliopo-
lis obtained, in 1836, a passage for two priests in the
canoes of 1837 to Oregon. But in the interval of
the appointment of the missionaries, other reflections
superseded the first; and on remarks being made
that, as there were in the country Anglican, Methodist
and Presbyterian ministers, the difference of teaching
might create dissentions among the Indians; for this
reason and perhaps to give them time to proselyte,
the grant of passage was withdrawn. But having
made new efforts the Bishop obtained the claimed
passage in the canoes of 1838, hence their arrival and
their labors at Vancouver.

The Catholics of the Wallamette valley were very
anxious to see among them at least one of the
priests they had so earnestly asked for. On the day
appointed for going, two large canoes from the
valley, conducted by two of the most respected citi-
zens of the colony, Mr. Etienne Lucier and Mr.
Pierre Beleque, were ready at Vancouver for depar-
ture. The Vicar General, leaving to Rev. M. De-
mers the charge of continuing the mission of
Vancouver, started on Thursday, January 3d, at three
p.m.

The Wallamette Fall,
a beautiful fall of 30 feet, across the river, Avhich re-
quires a portage of canoes and baggage for a quarter of
a mile, was passed early on Friday; and on Saturday
at 10 a. m. the campement de Sable, (Champoeg) was
reached. The four miles from thence to the log
church (for there was a church already) were made

CATHOLIC CHURCH IN' OREuOX. 77

on horseback. And as Mr. Lncier and Mr. Beleque
were neighbors, and on his way, the Vicar General
stopped and visited their families, v/ho were so glad
to be the first to see the priest and see him in his
true ecclesiastical Bole, or Soutane, which the two
missionaries continued to wear in travelling, at homer
and in the town of Oregon City till 1849.

That church made of logs was built in 1836, as
soon as they had any hopes of having priests. It
vas a building 70 feet by 30, built on a prairie, on
the eastern side of the river, and the road going to
Champoeg. The Vicar General took possession of a
part of the church, at the back of the altar, measuring*
12x30, which being afterwards divided by an alley
of 6 feet, gave suf&cient accommodation for two bed
rooms on one side and a kitchen and dining room on
the other. Later, in order to make room for some
orphans, the alley became the cooking place. The
afternoon of that day was spent in receiving visits,
as all, especially the women and the half-breed boys
and girls were very anxious to see the priest so long
announced and expected. That day was indeed a
day of joy and tender emotions to all.

The following day, January 6th, being Sunday and
the Epiphany of our Lord, the church was blessed
under the patronage of the great Apostle St. Paul,
after which was celebrated the first mass ever said in
the valley, in the presence of all the Canadians, their
wives and children. It was surely a great day for
them all; for the Canadians who h^d not seen a
priest, nor heard a mass for 10, 20, 30,. and some nearly
forty years; and for their wives who were at last be-

78 SKETCHES OF THE

holding one of those priests their husbands had so
long ago spoken to them about. Sweet and touch-
ing indeed were the sentiments these Canadians ex-
perienced on seeing themselves at the foot of an
altar, of the Cross, and before the face of a priest.
These poor Canadians were overjoyed, and the wo-
men were amazed in beholding the priest, at the altar
in sacerdotal vestments and prayer. The holy
Sacrifice of the Immaculate Lambof God was offered;
the pastoral letter of the Bishop who had heard their
voice and sent them priests, was read;, the command-
ments of God and of the church were published, as
well as the rules to be observed during the mission;
and all terminated with reflections and advices which
were very touching on both sides. All went home
happy and willing to obey the Church, even in
regard to separation from their wives until their
unions would be blessed. And so great was their
desire to have their wives and children instructed
and to lose nothing of the instructions given, that
they brought ihem from home to live in tents around
the church. The men would not do less; those
living the nearest came every day to hear mass and
passed the whole day at the church, returning home
in time to attend to their business and prevent the
wasting of their crops by their hired and slave In-
dians. Those who lived farthest away remained
several days before returning home, sleeping in the
large hall not yet divided by an alley. And let no
one suppose that in that ^season, the people had to
suffer from the inclemency of the weather; not at
all; for the weather was so extraordinarily fine and

CATHOLIC CHURCH IN OREGON. 79

mild, and so similar to the month of May in Canada,
as to make the good Canadians say; ''The Good God
has pity onus; it is for us that he has sent this
fine weather/'

The exercises were commenced every day by the
celebration of mass with an instruction, after which
followed the recitation of the prayers in French, the
explanation of the Apostle's creed and the most
important truths of religion, intermixed with singing
of canticles, from mass till 12 a. m., and from 1 to 4
p. m. And as the women did not all understand
French, and there were among them a variety of
tongues, some being of the Chinook, others of the
Colville and Flathead tribes, the difficulty was over-
come by using different interpreters to convey to
them the words of the priest. At dusk, took place
the evening prayers, the reading of pious books and
singing of French canticles; after which, some boys
were taught to read in French and serve at mass.
There was at that time in the valley a young man, 25
years of age, born in Havre de Grace, France, called
Pierre Stanislas Jacquet. He left the sea which he
entered at the age of 11. That young man became
useful by knowing how to read and teach the prayers,
while the priest was hearing confessions of the men,
who had to come more than once, and those of the
little boys and girls, to accustom them to the
holy practice. The men had also to be examined and
re-affirmed in their prayers, but they generally were
found to have retained them in a surprising manner.

The instructions and teaching ot prayers lasted
three weeks. The fruits of the mission tv^ere con-

'80 SKETCHES OF THE

soling; for many of the Indian women and a number
of grown boys and girls, and young children had
learned to make the sign of the Cross, the offering of
the heart to God, the Lord's prayer, the Hail Mary,
the Apostle's Creed and some of the Acts; 25 Indian
ivomen were baptized in excellent dispositions, and
their unions with their husbands blessed by the
church; 47 other baptisms of children were made;
to which, if we add those two of an old In-
dian man and a young Indian girl, both sick, who
soon died, and were the first buried in the new cem-
etery, we will have 74 baptisms and 25 marriages;
the 26th couple, being that of a Canadian, married in
the valley by the Rev. D. Lestie, without the certifi-
cate of the death of his wife he had left in Canada,
the Vicar General ordered and obtained a separation.
Hence only 25 marriages instead of 26.

Besides the altar fixed in due time, the Vicar
General had a communion rail made to separate the
sanctuary from the nave, a cross fixed on the gable
of the church, an acre of ground chosen and fenced
and blessed for a graveyard with a high cross in the
centre, and small wooden crosses were blessed for
each house. The six first couplets of canticles which
had been learned, and were daily sung at mass with
some taste and delight by the men women and chil-
dren, were earnestly recommended to be sung at
home. The two missionaries saw with great pleasure
their advice put in practice. In fine, taking the
fourth and last week of his mission to rest a little,
the Vicar General went and took* jDOSsession of a
tract of ground of 640- acres for the mission, and went

CATHOLIC CHURCH IN OREGON. 81

around the whole establishment to visit the settlers,
who received him with the greatest demonstrations
of joy and thanks to God for the consolations of
religion they had received; their joy, nevertheless,
was greatly lessened in not being allowed to keep
among themselves, at least, one of those they had
called for. But they expected that this would not
last long, and that their good father. Dr. McLaughlin,
would obtain a change. Having given them five
Sundays, the Vicar General started on Monday, the
5th of February and reached Vancouver on Tuesday
at 5 p. m., where he remained at w^ork with Kev. M.
Demers till the 14th of March.

The True Nx\me or our River.

It is fit to explain here, why, in the foregoing par-
agraphs, the name of our river is called IVallamette^
rather than Wallamet or Willamette, as many call it
now. The reason is obvious : it is because Wallametie
is the true Indian name, whereas Wallamet and Wil-
lamette are but corrupted and fabricated ones of
modern date. Proofs are not wanting to show that
from 1812 to 1842, the principal persons in the
country, either American of Astor and Hunt's expe-
dition, or British, or Scotchmen, or French Canadi-
ans of the North West and Hudson Bay Companies,
always spelled the name with an ''a" in the first
syllable, and a '^tte'' in the last one, thus: Wallam-'
eite. The letters ''mette" not to be pronounced
*'met" as in the ¥renQ}ivfoxdihonqitet; but as ''mette'"
in the French w^ord gazette. It was thus spelled by
the gentlemen of the H. B. Co., Dr. John McLaugh-

82 SKETCHES OF THE

lin, James Douglas and Peter Ogden, when the
Methodist, Presbyterian ministers, Catholic mission-
aries and many other American citizens arrived here
in 1834, 1836, 1838 and 1840. Hence the numerous
discij)les, who adopting the name of our river as
spelled by them, made a faithful use of it before
1840, and long after 1842, and even as far down as
1848; and one even to 1859, because convinced of it
being the genuine name; and all that, notwithstanding
the strong prevailing use of the spurious one of
AVillamette. Witness the following instances.

Rev. Jason Lee, who arrived in the country in 1834
signs, in 1844, with Dr. McLaughlin and others, a
document in which the word is spelled Wallamette.
David Leslie, W. H. Wilson and George Gay, who
came here in 1837, Sidney Smith in 1839, and A. F.
Waller and L, H. Judson in 1840, say they are living
in the valley called Wallamette Young and Car-
michael, addressing the Oregon temperance society,
date their letter from Wallamette, Jan. 3, 1837. Eev.
G. Hines who came here in 1840, in his history of
Oregon, in 1859, on all occasions, calls our river by
the name of Wallamette. Dr. E. White, who arrived
here in 1836, when writing as sub-agent of Indian
affairs to the secretary of war in 1843, always dates
his letters from the Wallamette valley. Josiah L.
Parrish and A. F. Waller, who arrived here in 1840,
as Methodist ministers, affirm that the name of the
river is an Indian one, to be spelled with an ^-a" hi
the first syllable.

The Catholic missionaries on their arrival at Van-
couver in 1838, received also the name with its or-

CATHOLIC CHURCH IN OREGON. 83

tograpliy from the same gentlemen, and always used
it in their long correspondences at home and abroad,
from 1839 to 1848, dating their letters from or ad-
dressing them to: "St. Paul of Wallamette.'' So did
the Sisters of Notre Dame, Belgium, from 1844 to
1853. The gentlemen of the Hudson Bay Co. did
likewise, in all their transactions and writings: thus,
their bills of supplies to the Catholic mission, from
1839 to 1847 were always headed: ^'Catholic Mission
of Wallamette or of Wallamette falls.'' Rev. Mr.
Beaver, who w^as chaplain at Vancouver, from 1836
to 1838, having returned to England, in a certain
deposition made in London in 1849, calls our river
by the name he had learned during his stay at Van-
couver, Wallamette,

First Mission to Cowlitz, "Washington Territory,

1839.

The first mission to Cowlitz was begun by the
Vicar General on March 17th, 1839, and continued
until the 1st of May following. Arriving at the set-
tlement on the evening of March 16tli., the Vicar
General was accomodated by Mr. Simon Plamondon
with a room for his own use and also an apartment
18x25 feet to be used as a chapel. Besides the four
farmers and their families forming the colony, there
were a large number of servants, employed on the
farms of the 11. B. Co., some of them having
wives. The mission commenced on Passion Sunday
with the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, the publication
of the law of God and the precepts of the Church —
on which an instruction was given. Mass was cele-

84 SKETCHES OF THE

brated every day at 6 a. m., during which an in-
struction was given. The rest of the day was devoted
to teaching the Catechism and canticles to the
women and children in French. In the evening all
assembled in the chapel where evening prayers, an
instruction, and singing hymns preceded the hearing
of confessions which continued long into the night.
The Indians were instructed at stated intervals every
day. The ceremonies of Holy week made a deep
impression on all who attended, and the mission was
fruitful in good results.

The news of the arrival of the Missionary at Cow-
litz caused numerous delegations of Indians to come
from remote distances in order to hear and see the
blade govm. Among these delegations was one led by
a chief named Tsla-lakum, whose tribe inhabited
"Whitby Island, Puget Sound, 150 miles from the
Cowlitz mission. After a journey of two days in
canoes to Fort Nesqualy, and an arduors march of
three days on foot, across streams and rivers and by
an exceedingly rough trail, they reached Cowlitz with
bleeding feet, famished and broken down. Their
object was to see the blacJcgown and hear him speak
of the great Spirit. As soon as they were refreshed
the Missionary began to speak to them of God, of
the Incarnation and Eedemption. But the great
difficulty was how to give them an idea of religion
so plain and simple as to command their attention,
and which they could retain in their minds and carry
back with them to their tribe. In looking for a plan
the Vicar General imagined that by representing on
a square stick, the forty centuries before Christ by

CA.THOLIC CHURCH

40 marks; the thirty three years of our Lord by 33
points, followed by a cross; and the'6%*hteen cen-
turies and thirty-nine years since, by 18 marks and
39 points, would pretty well answer his design, in
giving him a chance to show the beginning of the
world, the creation, the fall of angels, of Adam, the
promise of a Savior, the time of his birth, and his
death upon the cross, as well as the mission of the
Apostles. The plan was a great success. After eight
da^^s explanation, the chief and his companions be-
came masters of the subject; and, having learned to
make the sign of the cross and to sing one or two
canticles in Chinook jargon, they started for home
well satisfied, with a square rule thus marked, which
they called: Sahcde stick, (Bois cVen haut.) That
plan was afterwards changed from a rnle to a large
chart containing the great epochs of the world, such
as the Deluge, the Tower of Babel, the ten com-
mandments of God, the 12 apostles, the seven sac-
raments and precepts of the Church; these being
very usefvil to enable the missionary the teaching of
the Indians and w^hibes. It was called, ^'The Catho-
lic Ladder."

The fruits of this long mission were very consoling.
The women, grown boys and girls, had learned their
prayers in part, and some of the catechism; and the
younger children, some part of their prayers. The
first strophe of several canticles, in French and Chi-
nook, had been learned, and were sung alternately by
the two choirs of men, women and children, after the
chant of the other strophes by a solus. By that
means, the offices, on Sunday, at mass and vespers,

86 SKETCHES OF THK

were rendered pretty solemn and attractive. The
number of baptisms were 28, of which, 20 were In-
dian children, and? were adult women; thus in
adding the 7 made in December last, we will have 34
baptisms made at Cowlitz, 7 marriages blessed, and
large numbers of Easter Communions.

The winter season of 1838-9 had been so excej^tion-
ally beautful as to allow the farmers to plow and
BOW without interruption. On the 5th day of April,-
the prairies were blooming with wild flowers and
strawberries. On the 7th the grass was 6 inches
high. Augustin Rochon, the servant of the mission,
brought from Canada, had in no way remained idle;
he had made 6,000 rails for fences, squared the
timbers for a house and barn, which were to be
hauled on the mission land as soon as he could get a
yoke of oxen. The settlers of Cowlitz and their fam-
ilies were extremely pleased to have the visit of Kev.
M. Demers, during the mission of the Vicar General
there. This visit was due to the following circum-
stances : —

First Mission at Fort Nesqualy.
* About the 8th of April, 1839, Rev. D. Leslie, a
Methodist minister, arrived at Cowlitz en route to
Nesqualy where he intended establishing a mission
among the Indians. This information at once
prompted Vicar General Blanchet to despatch an In-
dian express to Father Demers at Vancouver, asking
him to proceed at once to Nesqualy in order to plant
the true seed in the hearts of the*Indians there. Fa-
ther Demers left immediately and reached his desti-
nation in six days, during which he %as drenched

CATHOLIC CHURCH IN OREGON. 87

with a cold and continuous rain. He was welcomed
Avith great politeness by Mr,, Kitson, the commander
of the fort; a house was appropriated for th^ purpose
of a chapel, and he at once entered upon the object
of his arduous journey. The Indians flocked from
all sides to see the great chief of the French and re-
ceive his instructions.' An unforespen incident how-
ver, came near preventing the mission begun under
K^ach favorable auspices. The commandant was un-
willing to allow a vast crowd of Indians to enter the
fort, and ordered them to stay outside of the pali-
sades. One of the Indians, bolder than the rest,
dared to force an entry and was pushed back rather
roughly by Mr. Kitson, hence the beginning of a
riot, which might have become fatal, if the appear-
ance of the Missionary had not appeased that un-
tamed multitude. Who shall not here admire the
holy influence of religion in the person of an humble
priest over an enraged multitude of Indians, on his
simple appearance among them? Such is the in-
fluence of religion.

Father Demers was then obliged to go out of the
fort to teach the Indians, who, during the whole
tifne of the mission, gave him evidence of their most
perfect docility to his advice. The first mass was
celebrated in the presence of the commander and
other persons of the fort. Among the throng there
were counted Indians of 22 different nations. All
the days of the man of God were devoted to his
dear neophytes. To celebrate the divine oflices,
teach the Christian prayers, administer baptism to
children, explain to the Indians the dogmatic and

88 SKETCHES OF THE

moral truths of religion, to hear the confessions of
the Canadians; such were the occupations which
absorb^ the days and part of the nights of the
priest during the*ten days the mission lasted.

Monday, the 29th of April, was to the servant of
God a day well calculated to indemnify him plenti-
■^ully for his long and painful journeys and mission-
ary labors; for on that day, Mrs. Kitson the wife of
the commander, after having followed the instruc-
tions with much attention, and practiced with fervor
the exercises of piety prescribed to her, had the
happiness to open her eyes to the light, and receive
the gift of faith and the grace of baptism. The fol-
lowing day, the 30th, being the day fixed for his de-
parture, was a day of mourning for the poor Indians
of Nesqualy. Men and women flocked around him
to entreat him to remain among them' and to show
him the deep sorrow which his too untimely parting
caused them. They went so far as to promise him
perfect docility to his advice, and that, if polygamy
was an evil in the eyes of the Great Spirit, they
would forthwith conform themselves to his will.
Deeply touched by these admirable effects of the
grace of God, Father Demers encouraged them to
perseverance, and consoled them the best he could
for having to leave them, giving them to understand
that he parted with them to obey God who was call-
ing him elsewhere /where sheep were to be brought
to the fold; and that he would soon return to them
and prepare them for baptism. After having given
orders to build a chapel, and said mass outside of
the fort, he parted with them, blessing the Lord for

CATHOLIC CHURCH IN OREGON. 89

the success of his mission among the whites and
Indians, and reached Cowlitz on Monday, the SOtti.,
with the conviction that his mission at Nesqnaly had
left a very feeble chance for a Methodist mission
there. Brother "Wilson, whom minister Leslie had
left orders with to build a house, on a certain piece
of land, must have been greatly despondent at being
witness to all he had seen.

The fruits of this unexpected mission were, 13
baptisms, 2 of which were adult women, the rest
being children, and 2 marriages. This mission was
made so short because Rev. M. Demers was bound
to be at Vancouver to meet there the brigades of
North and South, and prepare himself for his mission
to the upper Columbia. The Vicar General having
completed his mission at Cowlitz and given his orders
for the building of the priest's house, prepared to
start for Vancouver.

Second Mission in the "VVallamette Valley.

The two Missionaries left Cowlitz, Thursday, May
2nd, 1839, for Fort Vancouver, Father Demers desir-
ing to visit the Catholic settlement at St. Paul's,
which latter place they reached in safety by means of
a canoe propelled by the stalwart arms of four Indi-
ans. Father Demers at once started on horseback to
visit all the settlers, but was obliged to relinquish his
journey and return again to Vancouver in conse-
quence of a violent cold which he caught on his
former journey to Nesqualy. Whilst there he had
the pleasure of receiving two large cases filled with
goods intended for the Mission which had been for-

90 SKETCHES OF THE

warded from Canada^ and which were greatly needed.
Among the gifts was a beautiful folio edition of
the bible presented by Kev. Antoine Parent, of the
Seminary of Quebec, and which was greatly admired
by all who saw it.

On arriving at St. Paul the Vicar General learned
with much surprise that his first mission at St. Paul
had caused quite a commotion .among the Methodist
preachers who had a missionary station about twelve
miles south of the Catholic settlement. The cause of
this excitement arose from the fact that the Vicar
General had re-baptized and re-married a number of
persons who were officiated over by the Methodist
ministers ; a number of Catholics withdrew also
from the temperance society and prayer meetings of
the Methodist brethren. These acts aroused all the
ire of the ministers who deeming themselves and
their office ignored, determined to be revenged;
but before doing so they endeavored to make prose-
lytes among the Catholics through means of Kev.
Daniel Lee's preaching and praying in some of their
houses. Rev. David Leslie next got up a revival,
but it was barren of any fruits. As a dernier resort a
complaint was made to Governor Douglas relative to
the influence which the Catholic Missionaries were
using in order to keep the lambs of the flock out of
the clutches of the Wesley an wolves. The Govern-
or, however, told his informant very curtly that *4t
was none of his business." Thus, finding themselves
foiled at every point, the preachers had recourse to
their usual weapon of slander and falsehood. A
copy of an infamous publication entitled Maria

CATHOLIC CHURCH IN OREGON. 91

Monk, was circulated among the community ; this
work pretended to give ''awful disclosures" concern-
ing confession and convent life, and was filled with
stale slanders and exploded inventions. The circu-
lation of this obscene book caused considerable feel-
ing among the Catholics and the Vicar General found
on his return an excited community where all was
peace at his former visit.

The Vicar General's attention was at once directed
towards allaying the excitement by a simple explana-
tion of the vicious causes which led the Methodist
ministers to cast such a firebrand among a peaceable
and happy community. He proved the work to be a
tissue of falsehoods and calumnies which had been
refuted over the signatures of some of the most re-
spectable Protestants of Montreal where the scene
of its shameless relations was laid. The Canadian
settlers naturally became indignant at the vile artifice,
hypocrisy and ingratitude of the Methodist ministers
whose lives they had been the means of saving but a
short month before. It appears that an Indian had
stolen some wheat and being discovered he was se-
verely beaten at the Methodist mission: his tribe
threatened to massacre the people at the mission
which so alarmed Eev. David Leslie that he hastened
at once to the Canadians begging them to use their
influence with the Indians to save them, which the
Canadians did most effectually. Finally, the Metho-
dists discovering that their efforts to malign their
Catholic neighbors were recoiling upon their own
heads they quietly withdrew the vile book which had
caused so much trouble and learned afterwards to
live in amity with their neighbors.

92 SKETCHES OF THE

The second mission given at St. Paul's, by the
Vicar General, lasted thirty days, and was attended
with great zeal by the surrounding settlers, their
wives and children. The Catholic Ladder was found
very useful in imparting instruction, as many of the
neophytes did not understand French sufficiently
to be instructed in that language. It was also ex-
posed in the church on Sundays and fully explained
to the congregation who listened with the most re-
sj)ectful attention.

During the mission the Vicar General had the
consolation of receiving into the fold of Christ Mr.
Montour, a former clerk of the Hudson Bay Co., to-
gether with his wife and children. This gentleman
proved a most zealous convert, assisting with the
greatest devotion at all the offices of the church on
Sundays and week days. On the Sunday within the
octave of Corpus Christi all the congregation united
in a grand procession in honor of the Blessed Sacra-
ment; repositories were erected and an avenue of
trees planted, through which the large multitude
passed in regular order. Thus, this mission pro-
duced great spiritual results, and the Vicar General
left for Vancouver on the 7th of June, well pleased
with the earnest piety of the congregation of St.
Paul.

The Brigade of the NortHo Mission of Father
Demers to Fort Colville in 1839.

The Hudson's Bay Co's. brigade of the north, was
Bijledi des port eitrs in. consequence oi the men being
obliged to pack the baggage on their backs for want

CATHOLIC CHUECH IN OREGON. 93

of horses, started on June 22nd 1839. It consisted of
a flotilla of nine barges manned by fifty-seven Kien
under the command of Chief Factors Ogden and
Black. A passage was offered to one of the mission-
aries with this brigade as far as Walla Walla, and as
the Indians at Fort Colville had been told by the
missionaries that one of them would return again for
the purpose of instructing them in the faith. Father
Demers was selected for that duty, leaving to the
Vicar General the vast missionary field already open
along the waters of the Columbia, the Wallamette,
and Puget Sound.

Arriving at Walla Walla Father Demers procured
a guide expecting to make the trip to Colville in six
days; in this, however, he was doomed to disappoint-
ment as his guide proved treacherous and left him
alone before half the journey was accomplished,which
necessitated him to send back for another guide, and
thus fourteen days were consumed on the journey.
After this delay and having surmounted many diffi-
culties. Father Demers arrived at Fort Colville where
he entered at once on a mission which lasted for
thirty-three days and resulted very beneficially to the
employers of the H. B. Co., as well as to the numer-
ous Indians gathered around the fort. On his re-
turn trip he also gave an eight day mission at
O'Kanagan and spent two weeks at Walla Walla to
the great joy of the assembled Indians and the few
whites employed around the fort.

The Brigade of the South. Second Mission to Cow-
litz.
The brigade w^as composed of a large number of

. "X.

OF THl^

TX-fcTX-i

94 . SKETCHES OF THE

servants, trappers of the H. B. C, returning* from
California with horses laden with fur. It arrived at
Vancouver June 15th, and was to return in three
weeks, with horses packed with provisions and goods
for the trade of the following year. Several of the
servants had wives and children to be baptized, in-
structed and married. The task became onerous on
the Vicar General, as this was in addition to the or-
dinary duty of teaching of the ladies and children of
the fort and others. He undertook it heartily, say-
ing Mass early and dividing his time between them
all : there were made 44 baptisms, of which 13 were
adults, and the same number of marriages, amongst
js^hich were those of Mr. Michel Lapramboise, the
conductor of the brigade, and Mr. Joseph McIiOugh-
lin, son of Dr. McLoughlin. The brigade left July
13, having to camp between 50 and 60 times, making
4 leagues a da}^ before reaching their trapping
j)laces. In Southern Oregon it had to pass through a
very warlike, wicked and treacherous race of Indians,
waiting in ambuscade for the purpose of robbing and
killing animals and men, on all occasions. Hence
the name of Les Coqm7is (the Rogues) given to them
and La Riviere oitx Coqidns (the Eogue river) given
to the country, by the men of the brigade.

After attending to the spiritual wants of the bri-
gade of the north and south, the jDlace to be visited
next was the Cowlitz settlement. The Vicar General
reached that place on July 20 ; and as he had learned
that a building had been erected on the mission
land, he directed his steps there, and took possession
of a little 30x20 log house in which he celebrated
Mass the following day. It was roofed, and had an

CATHOLIC CHURCH IN OREGON. "95

addition for a kitchen at one end, but was without
floor, doors, and windows. It took some tim^ before
this could be done, or the joints of the logs could be
filled with earth, as the farmers were busy at their
harvest. He found there also a barn of 60x30 raised,
roofed and ceiled around, ready to receive the crop _of
6 bushels of wheat and 9 bushels of peas, sown last
spring. Augustin, the laborer, had fenced
24 acres of land, and ploughed 15 others, to be sown
next fall ; so that the missionary of that place was
assured of his daily bread.

The log house was used as a chapel, under the
patronage of St. Francis Xaverius, and a lodging for
the priest till 1842. The priest, in having his mod-
est bed on the Gospel side of the sanctuary, was
more fortunate than the young Samuel, who had his
own in the vestibule, away from the sanctuary. The
daily teaching of the women and children commenced
as soon as the harvest Avas over. The Catholic Ladder
was used here, for the first time, with great profit to
all, on the week-days and on Sundays. Augustin
Roclion, the servant of the mission, had run a great
danger, some time after the departure of the Vicar
General, in the beginning of May. He had bought
a^horse from an Indian and paid the price agreed;
the Indian, displeased with his bargain, came back to
have his horse again, which Augustin refused: hence
a strife, in which he was stabbed by the Indian;
fortunately, there was present a half-breed who, seiz-
ing the stick Augustin had thrown to the ground in
order to have free use of his hands, soon made the
Indian run away. This mission lasted 40 days.

96 SKETCHES OF THE

The first mission to Nesqualy was made by Father
Demers, who celebrated the first mass in the fort on
April 22, the day after he arrived. His visit at such
a time was forced upon him by the establishment of
a Methodist mission there for the Indians. His mis-
sion was a success; and, it now being the time to go
and consolidate the good already done there, the
Vicar General left Cowlitz, reached fort Nesqualy on
Aug. 30, and began his mission of 12 days. The fort
contained five families, including that of Mr. Kitsen,
the commander and his servants, numbering in all
36 souls. The men attended mass at 5 in the morn-
ing, and had other exercises in the evening; their
commander leading them the example though not a
Catholic.

The forenoon was devoted to women and children
of the fort, teaching them their prayers and explain-
ing the catechism, with the aid of the Catholic Ladder,
Some of the women able to speak only Nesqualy,
Chinook jargon, and Flathead, Mr. Kitsen, who
understood those languages, besides French and En-
glish, was very useful as an interpreter. Some of the
women on the outside were allowed to assist at the
exercises, and at the end of the mission the women
and children were able to answer many questions on
God, Holy Trinity, Incarnation and Redemption; all
had learned to sing the first couj)let of five French
canticles, and two in Chinook.

The afternoon was devoted to the teaching of the
Indians, who were few in the beginning, but con-
tinued to arrive in canoes every day, until they num-
bered at least 300. Twice was the Vicar General

CATHOLIC CHURCH IN OREGON. 97

obliged to allow a number of men and women to
come and have the satisfaction of touching his hand,
the mothers brought their children on their backs
for the same purpose. Among other chiefs was
Tslalakom, one of the 12 who travelled from Whitby's
Island to Cowlitz, in April last, in order to see the
Blaclcgown, Instructions out of the fort were given,
first in a large tent, and afterwards in the open air,
under the shade of a tree. All were looking at a
large Catholic Ladder, hung up on a pole, the points
being shown with a long stick. Among the remarks
made by some of the chiefs was that of Tslalakom :
''That man Noah had more children than the first
man Adam.'' It was a beautiful sight in the evening
to look from the inside gallery of the fort on the
Indian camp with its numerous bright fires, and to
listen to the harangues of the chiefs on the subject
which had been explained to them, and the duty of
their listening to the great chief of the French.
Some of them soon learned to make the sign of the
cross in Chinook jargon, and to sing the first couplet
of two canticles in the same dialect. Two Indian
children only received baptism, because the parents
were afraid of that medicine. There were 6 baptisms
and 2 marriages were made. Mass was celebrated
on the last Sunday outside of the fort, in a repository
made of matting, to give the Indians an opportunity
of witnessing the great ceremony; the men sitting on
their mats in a semicircle in front of the altar, and
the women behind them. At the mass as well as at
the vespers, the two choirs of men and women made
the air resound with the chant of their canticles.

98 SKETCHES OF THE

And so amazed were the Indians, that after the ser-
vice was over, they remained still long before
leaving their, places. Poor Bro. Wilson who, from a
sailor boy had become a preacher, was looking at
this Catholic demonstration at the hands of the In-
dians, with no small astonishment.

Short Re-union of the Two JMissionaries — Objection
TO THE Residence at the Wallamette, Raised
— Parting of the Missionaries for Winter Quar-
ters.
The Vicar General left Nesqualy on Thursday and
reached Cowlitz on Saturday Sept. 14; and leaving
this place four days later, he arrived at Vancouver on
the 20th., where he was joined,on Oct. 1st, by Father
Demers, returning from his mission of 3 months and
10 days to the upper Columbia. The result of his
mission, as to baptisms, was as follows: at Colville 37;
of whites 12, of Indians 25; at OKanagan 19; of
whites 4, of Indians 15: at Walla Walla 5; of whites
2, of Indians 3: en route 12 Indians were baj)tized,
making the number of baptisms 73 — 18 whites, and
5t} Indians. The joy of their re-union was increased
by the good news that Governor Douglas had com-
municated to the Vicar General on his arrival there,
<and which, on request, he later gave in writing, viz:
Fort Vancouver, Oct. 9th., 1839.
My dear Sir : I am directed to inform you that the
governor and committee have no further objection to
the establishment of a Roman Catholic Mission in
the Wallamette; and you are therefore at liberty to
take any means you may consider necessary towards
the promotion of that object. I Remain, My dear

Sir, Yours very truly, James Douglas.

Very Rev. F. N. Blanchet, V. G.

CATHOLIC CHURCH IN OREGON. 99

It was on the representations the good Dr.
McLoughlin had made, on his late journey to Lon-
don, that the objections to a residence were raised.
On hearing this fact, the two missionaries began to
prepare themselves for departure. And being ready
to start on Thursday Oct. 10th., they bade adieu to
their endeared congregation, to the ladies and gen-
tlemen of the Fort, and to Governor Douglas, tender-
ing him their warmest thanks for the generous
hospitality they had received; and, starting in canoes
they went down the river and landed at the mouth of
the "Wallamette, where they had supper together,
after which they parted for their winter quarters;
Father Demers for the Cowlitz, and the Vicar General
for the Wallamette mission, which he reached early
on Saturday, wjiile his dear confrere reached his mis-
sion but on Sunday, owing to the heavy load in his
canoe, and the many dangerous rapids on the river.
On the day after his arrival he blessed the bell he
had brought with him, which weighed 50R), had it
set up 40 feet from the ground, and began to ring the
Angelus three times a day. The Vicar General who
had also brought one which w^eighed 80 lb, had it
blessed two days before Christmas, and began to ring
the Angelus three times a day, in honor of the
Incarnation, and glory of Mary Immaculate.

The hall of 30x12, separated from the altar by a
partition, needed the loose floor to be fixed, the
ceiling and some partitions had to be made; a man
undertook the job, which he performed in three
weeks. Dr. John McLaughlin had arrived at Van-
couver from Europe, by the express boat, on Oct. 18.

100 SKETCHES OF THE

His visit to the Wallamette settlement was warmly
greeted by all as a father. Great was the joy of the
people of the two missions, in having a priest to re-
main with each of them. Great also was the joy of
all in having a high midnight mass, at Christmas, in
both churches, which were full to completion.
This closes the labors of the missionaries in 1839.

Sketch of thk Cowlitz Mission by Rev. M. Bemers.

Cowlitz, Feb. 5, 1840.
To Rev. F. C. Cazeault, Secretary, Quebec.

My dear Sir: Having returned on the 1st of Octo-
ber last from a mission I had given during the summer,
in the upper part of the Columbia, I could not have
the pleasure of staying very long with the Vicar Gen-
eral. I had to leave him on the 10th of the same
month to take charge of the mission on the Cowlitz
river, which Rev. Blanchet had left in order to be at
Vancouver during the month of September. This
separation did not take place without sorrow as we
were leaving each other not to meet again for four
months; but it was imposed upon us by need and
duty. In effect, the permission of settling perma-
nently in the Wallamette had been granted to the
great advantage of its daily augmenting Catholic
population; the Cowlitz mission had not to be ne-
glected either, and it was assigned to me. Having
left Vancouver both on Thursday, 10th of October,
we took supper together at the mouth of the Wallam-
ette, after which each one went his way in order to
be in his respective place on the following Sunday,
which I could not do, notwithstanding all the efforts
of the men and the active part I took in the labor.
I had with me a half-breed named J. B. Boucher and
three Indians : my canoe was large and contained a
large quantity of luggage, among which was a bell
weighing 50 or 60 pounds. I was therefore deprived

CATHOLIC CHURCH IN ORECION. 101

of tlie happiness of celebrating* mass and my people
of hearing it. As soon as they heard 1 was coming,
all flocked to meet me. They welcomed me and
carried my baggage to my residence. After my in-
stallation I went with my j^eople to pay tribute to a
cross erected near, by.

The following day, Oct. 14, a frame ./as erected,
the bell blessed and place in a position 40 feet above
the ground. I considered it an honor to ring the
first Angelus myself. A consecrated bell was heard
for the first time in the valley of the Cowlitz as w^ell
as in the whole extent of this vast country. Imagine
a log house 30x20 feet, having roof like a wolfs head,
no ceiling, and a floor levelled with an axe, and you
will have an idea of the place where I spent the win-
ter. It was also my chapel. They had decided on
building another house and had even planed the
lumber during the preceding winter, but instead of
that they determined'to erect, with the same kind of
wood, a chapel 60 feet long, and to leave the same
house to the priest until he could get a better one.
The Cpwlitz mission has still but eight families in-
cluding those of the H. B. Co., altogether 46 persons,
exclusive of a few Indians who lived with the French,
and a greater or smaller number of employees accor-
ding to the need.. Three days in the week were set
apart for the instruction of the Canadians' wives and
children; the three others were given to the Indians
and to the study of the Cowlitz language which is
very difficult for a beginner.

The young men and the Indians who live with the
French, being unable, on account of their work, to
attend during the day, I was obliged to give them
part of the nights. For 1 J or 2 hours I was kept
busy teaching them their prayers, reading, the an-
swers at Mass and the way to serve it, also the Plai7i
Chant,

At midnight mass, on the festival of Christ mas, they
were able, by the means of repeated exercises, to hon-

102 SKETCHES OF THE

or the birth of our Saviour, by uniting their voices to
those of the angels in the Gloria in excelsis. Soon af-
ter this, they could help the priest in singing the Cre-
do, The young men of this mission, as well as all
the half-breeds in general, who were instructed at
Fort Vancouver, owe to the kind dispositions and de-
voted cares of Dr. John McLaughlin the knowledge
they have of the letter of their Catechism before
the coming of the missionaries; a benefit which is
surely not the least amongst those the Canadians re-
ceived at his hands, and for which they owe him
eternal gratitude.

Experience has taught us not to rely too much on
the first demonstrations of the Indians and not to
rely much on the first dispositions they manifest.
Those of the Cowlitz promised better success. Every-
where we meet the same obstacles which always re.
tard the conversion of the Indians, namely polygamy,
their adherence to the customs of their ancestors
and, still more, to tamamoas, the name given to the
medicines they prepare for the sick. This tamanwas
is generally transmitted in families and even women
can pretend to the honor of making it. If any one
is sick they call in the medicine-man. No danger
of their asking him what he wants for his trouble;
they would be afraid of insulting him. Whatever he
asks is given to him, without the least objection;
otherwise they may fear everything from that doctor,
who will not fail to take his revenge for a refusal by
sending some misfortane, or some sickness, or even
death through his medicines to the one who refused
him, be he 50 leagues off. If any one is dead, such
a one killed him; then let him look out on whom the
least suspicion falls; his life is in the greatest dan-
ger; the least they will do to him will be to kill his
horses, if they do not kill himself; and to force
him to give all that he has, through fear of death. A
serious quarrel took place lately on that account.
Hand play is also very common among them, they

CATHOLIC CHURCH IN OREGON. 103

get excited and often end it with a quarrel. They
add idolatry to infidelity. They paint on a piece of
wood a rough likeness of a human being and keep it
very precious. They believe these charms have a
superior power and strength, and they pray to them.
When they have exhausted all the resources of the
tamanwas, which often makes the evil worse, and the
sick man dies, they scarcely allow his eyes to close
before they are covered with a pearl bandage; his
nostrils are then filled up with aikioa, a kind of shell
they use for money; he is clad with his best clothes
and wrapped up in a blanket; four posts are driven
into the ground; in these posts holes are bored,
through which sticks are passed, upon which is
placed the canoe destined to receive the corpse
placed in file with his ancestors. They place him
face downward with his hiead pointing toward the
mouth cf the river. Not a handful of dust is laid
upon him; the canoe is covered with a great number
of mats and all is over. Then, they present their
offerings to the dead. If he w^as a chief or great
w^arrior amongst his men, they lay by his side his
gun, his powder horn and his bag: valuable objects,
such as, wooden plates, axes, kettles, bows, arrows,
skins &c., are placed upon sticks around his canoe.
Then comes the tribute of tears which the spouses
pay to each other and to their children. Day and
night for a month or more, continuous weeping,
shouting and wailing may be heard from a great dis-
tance. When the canoe gets rotten and falls on the
ground, the remains are taken out, wrapped up in
new blankets and laid in a new canoe. They cling
so much to this kind of sepulture that duiing the
winter, a child (baptized) having died without my
knowledge, I could not induce them to take him out
of the canoe in order to give him christian burial.
This adhesion to burial rites and tamaynfuas will
cause the missionaries to be more prudent in bap-
tizing. We have learned not to trust the r^jDcated

104 SKETCHES OF THE

promises they make to us not to have recourse to the
tamamoas if the baptized child gets sick. You may
see that progress has been very slow among them so
far; their customs and habits are so inveterate that it
will take a long time, for religion and the fear and
knowledge of God, to unroot an'd destroy them entire-
, ly. Polygamy is not as widely spread now as it used
to be. But there is in both sexes a fearful immorali-
ty. It is kept up and often taught by the whites
v^ho, by their scandalous conduct and boundless de-
baucheries, destroy the impressions made by the
truths of religion.

This year the mission will lend to the Indians seed
to sow in garden patches, especially peas and pota-
toes. Perhaps they will then try to come out of the
miserable state they are languishing in, w^lien they
will see that, with a little trouble and labor, they can
ameliorate it. The peas and potatoes may make
them for-^eb the grains and camas. I'ime unables
me to give greater extent to this sketch.

I am &c., }J. Demees, Priest.

Missionary Libors in 18-10. Missions to Vancouver,
Nesqualy, Whidby Island, Chinook Point, Brig-
ades, COLVILLE, AND FiRST COM.MUNION AT St. PaUL.

Wearied with a separation of four months. Rev.
M. Demers left Cowlitz, on Feb. 7th, for St. Paul,
which he reached on the 17th,. having had to brave
wind and rain, cold and snow, and s^Dent three days
in his journey to Vancouver, where he stopped four
days, and three other days on his way to St. Paul.
He remained but 8 days there, his presence being
much needed at Vancouver, where he arrived on the
25th, in order to oppose the eiforfcs minister Daniel
Lq^ was making amongst the Indians of the Fort
from January.

\
CATHOLIC ■ CHURCH i:n oeegon. 105

To deny the necessiij of baj)ti>m is to deny the
existence of original sin ; and to deny the existence
of original sin is to deny the necessity of a Kedemp-
tion, and declare that religion is a fable ; for such
are the consequences following from the denial of
original sin : and, alas, ^uch was nevertheless the
horrible and damnable doctrine which the Methodist
ministers of VVallamette preached formerly to the
Canadians, saying : ^'A child is saved and is a King
in the kingdom of heaven without baptism, ; the
adults are also saved if their hearts are good,'' and
strange to say, that minister who had failed with his
co-ministers to convert his countrymen and the Ca-
nadians, did not leave the fort before giving, by
aspersion, such a sham baptism to Indians ignoring
God, Holy Trinit}^, Incarnation, Redemption and
any prayers ; and vfho, in reaching the mission at
the Dalles, did the same with ignorant and polygam-
ist Indians, giving to them bread and wine.

Rev. M. Demers dividing his time between the
servants, women and children of the whites, and the
Indians, taught them all, and had but little trouble
to undeceive the latter, with the help of the Catholic
Ladder ; and to bring them back from the erroneous
road of Protestantism. His mission lasted 36 days,
after which he returned to Cowlitz in April 5, having
been 57 days absent.

The Vicar General having prepared his letter for
the express leaving for Canada, left St. Paul on
March 16, and reached Vancouver on the same day,
because of the strong current of the high water; that
was the quickest trip ever made. One item of liis

106 SKETCHES OF THE

report to Canada was: from March 1839 to March
1840, were made 204 baptisms, 35 marriages, 14
burials and one abjuration at St. Paul. Of the bap-
tisms, 73 on the Colville mission, 71 at Vancouver; '
30 at Cowlitz; 19 at Nesqualy and 11 at St. Paul.
The Vicar General left St. Paul on May 4th on a
journey to Cowlitz, in order to deliberate with Eev.
M. Demers on the plan of the summer campaign.
At Vancouver he had the pleasure to open two cases
of books, church ornaments and other effects, coming
from France; and on the 9th, the two missionaries
were embracing each other; but the consolation of
meeting together did not last long, by reason of the
Vicar General, being called by letter to visit some
person that was sick, had to leave on the 14th for
Nesqualy, where he found Mr. Kihen, the command-
er of the fort, sick in his bed. The exercises of the
mission at this fort commenced without delay, and
lasted from the 16th to the 27th of May; the fore-
noon being devoted to the instruction of the women
and children of the Canadians, and the rest of the
day to the Indians, outside of the Fort. Mrs. Kitson
being kind enough, as usual, to serve as interpreter.
She having showed the Indian women how to make
for themselves, robes of dressed deer skin, they ap-
peared this time, dressed like the \ihite women. All
were regular at the instructions. In visiting the
lodges in the evening, the Vicar General was pleased
to see the improvements made, in making the sign of
the cross, singing Chinook canticles and repeating
what they had learned.

On May 18th, Chief SaheioamUh arrived with a
band of his people. One of them being sick with

CATHOLIC CHURCH IN OREGON. 107

consumption, was prepared for baptism, when one
day, his companions moved by a superstitious fear,
carried him away: It took two days to over-
take him and bring him back. He was baptized
with his 8 children, at the age of 40; and afterwards
showed much faith and resignation to the will of
God. The missionary expected to see, at the mis-
sion, three other chiefs, called Tslalakom,Netham,di>Jid.
WitsJcalatche; but the murder of a man by a Soekwa-
mish, having rendered travelling on that bay danger-
ous, they did not come. The priest was much con-
•soled on seeing the eagerness of the Indians to come
at the first bell, to listen to the explanation of the
CatholiG Ladder and words of eternal life, under the
shade of a large tree.

The Vicar General was preparing to close his mis-
sion and return to Cowlitz, when on the 26th of May,
a canoe arrived containing 6 Indians; they were
chief Tslalakom's men and wife; sent by him, and
directed to bring the priest to see him and his tribe,
as he was sick and unable to come himself; and in
proof thereof, his wife presented Vicar general with
a skin sheath, which was found to contain the square
rule (Sahale stick) he had received on his visit to
Cowlitz, in April 1839. Thanking God for the door
opened to him, the Vicar General started, on May
27th, in a canoe of his own, landed at diiferent
places in the bay, to address the words of salvation
to the Indians ; and arrived the following day, the
Ascension day, at Tslalakom village, on the western
shore of Whidby Island. A battle had taken place on
that very same day between his tribe, the SkcJcioamisk y

108 SKETCHES OF THE

and the Klalams of Townsend Land, in which the lat-
ter, who were the aggressors, lost two men, becaus'e,
said Tslalahom, ''these men do not know God, nor
pray to him." He had tried to stop the fight, but in
vain. He had been protected by the cross he wore
on his neck. All this explained the strange move-
ment of the Indians, running on the shore and calling
'*Who are you'' [qui vive) on seeing the two canoes
coasting along the island.

The priest, in his black gown, was received with
the greatest demonstrations of joy by Tslalakom and
his tribe, and his baggage seized and carried to the '
village, on the high land, 50 feet above the level of
the bay. On Friday, May 29th, an altar tv^as jDre-
pared in a repository made vv^ith mats; a rough board
was the altar table ; the vestments for mass and sa-
cred vessels were ex2D0sed; a Catholic Ladder , (j feet
by 15 inches, was fixed on a mat and hoisted high on
a pole, before the eyes of all. ''I then began the in-
struction by making the sign of the cross in Chinook
jargon, says the Vicar General in his relation to the
Bishop of Quebec, and to my great astonishment, all
the assembly, men, women, and children, made the
same, pronouncing the words exactly as practical
and fervent christians. I began to sing the first
couplet of a canticle in Chinook jargon, to the air of
^^2\t vas rem2jlir le voeu de la tendresse'' and, behold,
to my great astonishment, all continued to sing it to
the end, with exact i)i*ecision. I began to sing ano-
ther one in the air ''je mets ma coiifiance,'^ and to my
increasing great astonishment they all continued the
stroph rendering it as well as the first one. I ad-

CATHOLIC CHURCH IN OREGON. 109

mired the success Tslalakom had had in teaching his
people; I blessed the Lord for the good dispositions-
of these poor Indians. My joy was great so as to
move me eyen to tears, which, nevertheless I tried to
contain before the crowd.''

*'I was then dressed in surplice, with a stole, and
beginning the explanation of the Catholic Ladder^
when chief Witskatche arrived with a band of his
tribe from another part of the island, and came to
shake hands; chief Nettam soon came also with his
bands. All the chiefs sat in front, the rest behind
and on the sides. That was indeed quite a large
meeting. I then began to dress for mass, and to
explain the mass, the great prayer of the Catholics.
In the whole assembly making the sign of the cross
and ringing the aforesaid couplets of canticles, I be-
came convinced that Nettam and Wltskatche had not
done less than TdalaJcom with their tribes. The
Catholic Ladders distributed at Nesqualy, the pre-
ceding year, had been used and explained, and the
chant of canticles practiced. The two canticles were
repeated alternately daring the whole Mass. In ad-
miration of what I heard and saw, I thought I was in
heaven, rather than in an Indian country. Tears of
joy fell again from my eyes. An infinite satisfaction
had been offered to God for the sins of these poor
people. There was a hope. Other bands of Indians
arrived after Mass, and among them a Klahim who
spoke in favor of peace. I continued the instruction
till night, and the day ended by prayer, rosary, and
the chant of canticles. The body of the Klam killed
in the battle was found and buried by the ojd men, for

110 SKETCHES OF THE

tlie young men would not touch a corpse, fearing that
it would shorten their days/'

On Saturday, May 30th, a large number of Indians
arrived from various parts of the island, who showed
themselves as attentive to the instructions and as col-
lected at Mass, as the day before. Desiring to visit
the Island, I directed my steps towards the north,
passed through beautiful prairies, forests of large
trees, fields of potatoes, made with no other instru-
ment than a curved stick, and arjrived at the house of
NeiAum, situate on the eastern point of the Island.
It was a house made of logs, 30x20, ceiled, and fur-
nished inside with a ta^Destry of mats, with an open-
ing in the center to let the smoke out. Netlum re-
ceived me with great attention and showed me the
place to sit down on a pile of folded mats. There
was no polygamy in this house, as generally prac-
ticed by the other chiefs. I regretted very much to
have no time to instruct, baptize and bless this in-
teresting couple. After prayer and chant of canti-
cles, I went to the shore and found 15 lodges of In-
dians, who had never seen the hlackgown. In seeing
me, they cried out, and placing themselves in a line,
men, women, and children, to the number of over
150, they came to touch my hand, a ceremony of
etiquette; after which they made the sign of the
cross, and sang the Chinook jargon canticles, which
they had learned, as well as the other tribes. I ad-
vised them to come to Mass and to bring their chil-
dren for baptism on the following day. I left them
full of joy in order to return to my tent, where I
found a large reunion of Indians, who listened at-

CATHOLIC CHURCH IN OREGON. Ill

tentively to my instruction, which was protracted late
in the evening, notwithstanding a high wind, the
noise of the waves and foliage.

On Sunday, May 31, Netlmn arrived early with his
band of Skachates, their women and children. Next
appeared at the head of his band, the Siiehomish, ac-
companied by inferior chiefs, WitsJcalatche, sur-
named Ze Francais, clad in full French costume,
trowsers, shirt, vest, overcoat garnished with quills
of porcupine, hat and cravat. Tslalakom came also
with his band of SocJcwamish; all placed themselves
according to rank, to the number of 400. The exer-
cises of the preceding day were repeated with the
same spirit and zeal as on the previous day, before
and during holy mass. My emotion was great at the
sight of such a multitude of Indians, so eager for the
kingdom of heaven; and at the chant, so pure and so
expressive by the many voices, whose accent so nat-
ural, seemed to me to surpass in beauty the harmony
of the most learned compositions of music masters;
it was so great that I could not master it.

The holy mass being over, the dinner of salmon
and smoked deer I had ordered, were seiTed on mats
before the chiefs: all were filled with joy: then fol«
lowed the great smoking of the calumet of peace and
union between the tribes. In the midst of the joy.
ous and noisy chatting, was heard a great crying out;
all rose up and saw a heavy wooden cross, twenty -four
feet long, in the arms of numerous Indians who were
advancing towards the spot j)repared for it; it
being solemnly blessed, and erected, all following
the example of the blackgoim, went and prostrated

112 SKETCHES OF THE

themselves and venerated it. Then followed the
chant of canticles by this joyous multitude of Indians
rendering homage to God and Jesus Christ, for the
first time. To this moving spectacle succeeded
another one, the baptism of the children. The mo-
thers and the children were placed in two lines,
leaving an alley in the center for me to move, and
also for the fathers of the children. I again explain-
ed the fall of man, the mystery of redemption, the
medicine of baptism. I required of all a profession
of faith and an abjuration: and all were loudly an-
swering: ''Yes, we believe in God who created all
things. Yes, we believe in Jesus Christ, who came
to redeem us. Yes, we believe He has made seven
medicines to make us good. Yes, we believe He
has made but one road to heaven. Yes, we promise
to keep and follow the road of the hlackgown^ which
is that Jesus Christ made. Yes, we reject all other
roads lately made by men. Yes, we renounce the
devil, his thoughts, words and deeds. Yes, we de-
sire to know, love and serve the great master of all
things.''

Then began the ceremonies of solemn baptism,
which lasted four hoiu's, during which time I bap-
tized 122 children. The heat was very oppressive;
the children Avere scared, and crying, and soon all
retired.

■Monday, June 1, was spent in the ordinary in-
struction and exercises. Tuesday, June 2, was fixed
for my departure, to the great sorrow of the poor In-
dians; I recommended the chiefs to encourage their
people to follow the road of the blackgoim, and urge

CATHOLIC CHURCH IN OREGON. 11 S

the conclusion of peace before the leaving of the*
priest. For that pur j)ose, WitsJcalatche ^2i^ deputed
to the SkeicamUhs', and, in changing my route for
Nesqualy, I had the happiness to contribute to the
reconciliation of two tribes. Having given my great
Catholic Ladder to Netlam, he offered to carry me to
Nesqualy in his large wooden canoe, which with 13
men, was still light. My canoe was carried over to-
JVetlam^s place, and I started on that day. In coast-
ing along the island I saw forts 18 or 20 feet high,
raised by the Indians to protect then^elves against
the YugoUah of Eraser river. I visited several tribes, .
and in one village 125 came to touch my hand, and
were found able to make the sign of the cross, and ta
sing the Chinook canticles. I stopped all night at
the village of the Skehamish^ the Indians who had
been fighting. At this place about 140 came to-
touch my hand, and made the sign of the cross, and
sung the canticles equally as well as the other tribes.
Sehalapahen, their chief, who had visited Father
Demers at Cowlitz, had taught them what he had
learned himself. On Wednesday, June 3, I solemnly
baptized 96 children; after which took place the
meeting for the conclusion of peace, which lasted
nearly four hours. My address was transmitted by
my interpreter to a third one, who delivered it to the
chiefs with an astonishing eloquence. After manj
and long harangues, it was concluded that the Skek^
wamish should pay two guns to the Klalams for the
two men killed. Witslakatche iceQQi\edi the guns and
carried them to the Klalams, who, according to cus-
tom, would give something in return. Thus was.

114 SKETCHES OF THE

peace concluded. I then started at 3 p. m., travelled
all Thursday, and reached Nesqualy on Friday, and
found Mr. Kitsen better, and started at 2 p. m. for
Cowlitz, which I reached on Saturday, June 6, at 10
p.m. The fruits of the mission were: 9 baptisms
at Nesqualy 218, at Whidby, 6 en route, total 233.

Many of the Chinook tribe had already seen the
hlacJcgown at fort Vancouver, and had had their chil-
dren baptized; but they had not yet been visited in
their own land. The time having arrived to visit
them at home, Kev. M. Demers left Cowlitz on May
19th, and arrived at Astoria on the 2]. The long-
expected ship bringing from the East, Jason Lee,
with a number of other Methodist ministers, their
wives and several young ladies, had just crossed the
bar; they were to be distributed all over the country,
in opposition to the Catholic missionaries. On the
following day, Eev. M. Demers went on his mission,
and fixed his tent among the Chinooks. lie met
there Daniel Lee, the preacher, who, after a few
days left him a clear stage, being in a hurry, no
doubt, to visit the ship in order to have the first
choice for a wife among the young misses. As to the
Eev. M. DemerSj a little bell in one hand, and a Ca-
tholic Ladder in the other, he continued his mission
for three weeks, instructing the adults, baptizing the
children, and doing much good. He returned home
much satisfied, after an absence of 26 days. He re-
mained but two days with the Vicar General, having
to leave on June 15th, for Vancouver, in order to ad-
minister to the Brigades going Noi-th and South, be-
fore leaving for the Colviile mission.

CATHOLIC CHURCH IN OREGON. 115

After Kev. M. Demers had left Cowlitz, the Vicar
General remained, in order to be present at the
erection of a new chapel measuring 25x50, which
took place on June 17; and leaving on the 19th, he
reached Vancouver on Sunday morning, remained
four days with his dear confrere^ and arrived at St.
Paul on June 21st, after an absence of 54 days.

Rev. M. Demers^ having given a mission of 10
days at Vancouver, started on June 29, with the Bri-
gade of the Porteurs, commanded by chief Factor Og-
den; was at Grandes Dalles portage on July 5th; at
Walla Walla on the 10th, reached the Palouse river
safely, half way between Walla Walla and Colville
and arrived at last at the end of his far distant
mission, having suffered much by the heat of the sun
and the want of water for himself and his horses.
Having completed his mission at Colville, he returned
by way of Okanagan and Walla Walla, reaching
Vancouver on Oct. 2, just three months and six days
after he had left it. After a few days of rest, he
started for St. Paul, which he reached on Oct. 11.
They both started together for Vancouver on the 17th
in order to give that place a mission of fourteen days
before going to their winter quarters; after which
the Vicar General reached Wallamette Oct. 31st.,
and Rev. M. Demers reached Cowlitz on the same
day, after an absence of four months and eighteen
days from home. At St. Paul 7 persons were found
sufficiently prepared to make their first communion
in December. It was during his mission at Colville
that, hearing there was a priest somewhere among

dlG SKETCHES OF THE

tlie Indians of the Eocky mountains, lie announced
the fact to- the Vicar General by a letter which reach-
ed him on August 30th.

The causes which led to the presence of Jesuit mis-
sionaries among the Indians of the Rocky Mountains
^are of such historical interest that we give them: —
A large number of Canadians and Iroquois were
^employed by the Companies trading among the In-
dians of the Pacific Coast, as well as by the various
expeditions by sea and by land. That of Capt. Hunt,
which started in 1811, had great hardships to en-
dure, and loss of men to suffer by desertion, in 1812;
of the number were 24 Iroquois who joined the Flat-
.head nation. They soon married and had families.
And as the Canadians were the first apostles among
the Indians of the Pacific Coast, so also were the 24
Iroquois among the Flatheads; speaking to them of
^heir religion, churches, priests, and festivals. The
Flatheads who were naturally good, were pleased.
They sent a deputation to St. Louis about 1830, in
order to ascertain about what the Iroquois related.
Soon after arriving, they took sick, called for the
priest, were baptized, and expired kissing the cruci-
fix. The nation sent another deputation of one Iro-
quois, in 1832; he arrived safe at St. Louis, had his
children baptized, and was returning home with some
hope of soon having priests for his countrymen and
adopted nation; but he was killed by the Sioux In-
dians. A third deputation was sent in 1839, calling
for priests. This time, the deputation consisting of
two Iroquois, returning in the fall, started with the
full hope that some priests would be sent on the fol

CATHOLIC CHUECH IN OSEGON. Ill

lowing year; for the Rt. Rev. Bishop Rosati, having-
written to the Superior General of the Jesuits at
Rome, begging him earnestly to take charge of that
mission, had received a favorable reply. Hence
the appointment of Father De Smet, who came in-
the spring of 1840, passed two months among the
Flatheads, baptized 350, and went home, to return
in 1841. Such is the origin of the Flathead mission,,
and the apostleship of the Iroquois, who, when" the
pretended missionaries, Jason Lee, and others, pre-
sented themselves to the Flatheads in 1834, told them
''These are not the priests we have spoken to you
about. They are not the priests with long black
gowns, who have no wives, say mass and carry a cru-
cifix with them." Rev. M. Demers had at last a cor-
respondence with Father De Smet, and brought
down the following with him:

Letter of Rev. FatlierDe Smet, S. J., to Very Rev. F. X. Blan-
cliet, V. G,

Fork of Jefferson, Eiver, Aug. 10th 1840.
Very Rev. Sir : — The present which I have the honor ■
to write will surprise your Reverence, as coming from one
unknown, but in quality of a co-operator in the Vineyard .
of the Lord, and in a so far remote country, it cannot be
disagreeable to you. I wish I could have leisure to give
your Reverence some details of my mission to the Rocky
Mountains, but Mr. Bruette who is so kind as to carry my
letter to Fort Colville, just ready to start, gives me but a few
minutes to write. Your Reverence will then learn that Mgr.
Rosati, Bishop of St. Louis, in concert with my provincial,
superior of the company in Missouri, and in compliance
with the desires often repeated by the Tetes Plates and
Pend d'OreiUes, and a great number of JVez PerceSj has^
sent me. to the Rocky Mountains, to visit these nations. I
have found the two first in the best desirable dispositions,
well resolved to stand by the true children of Jesus Christ.
The few weeks I had the happiness to pass among them,.

118 SKETCHES OF THE

have been the happiest of my Hfe, and give me the firm
hope, with the grace of God, to see soon renewed in
these countries, so long forsaken, the fervor of the first
Christians. Since I am among them, I give three, four or
five instructions a day ; they cannot be tired ; all come to
my lodge at the first ringing of the bell; they are anxious to
lose none of my words relating to these instructions on
heavenly subjects ; and, if I had the strength to speak ta
them, they would willingly listen to me whole days and
nights. I have baptized about 200 of their little children,
and expect to baptize in a short time 150 adults.

The object of my mission was to visit a great part of the
territory of Oregon, and make reports to my Bishop and
Superior, on the most favorable places to open missions.
But I have found so many good dispositions among the In-
dians of the plains, that I have changed the plan of my
journey. I will return to St. Louis before the winter, and
will be back next spring, with a caravan of missionaries,
who are already preparing themselves. The Soshones and
Serpens (Snakes) desire "to have an establishment; the
Tetes Mates Rud Pend d^Oreilles have nothing more at
heart. The Nez Perces seemed to be tired with these self-
dubbed ministers afe77imes, and show a great predilection
in favor of Catholic priests. We will therefore have enough
to occupy ourselves in these mountains without extending any
further into the land. I hope, nevertheless, that before the
winter of 1841, I will have the honor to pay a visit to your
Reverence, in order to have the aid of your counsels, and
work in concert to gain these poor nations to Jesus Christ.
Please present my respects to Rev. M. Demers.
I have the honor to be, etc.

P. J. De SMET, S. J., MiSSIONER.

Missionary Labors in 1841 ax Vancouver, Clackamas y
Falls of the Wallamette and Cascades.

The two missionaries had been separated nearly
four months and a half, since last fall. The place of
their re-union was Fort Vancouver. Eev. M. Demers
leaving Cowlitz on March 3rd, reached Vancouver on
the 6th., and began at that place a mission of 26

CATHOLIC CHURCH IN OREGON. 110

days, with the usual daily exercises, in the, morning,,
afternoon and evening ; and returned home April
3rd the eve of Palm Sunday, after an absence of 31
days.

There were three Indian tribes which had been
gained to Methodism for over a year, viz : those of
Clackamas, Wallamette Fall, and Cascades. The
two missionaries had been too busy to visit them be-
fore. A door was opened to them this year in the
following manner : A chief of the Clackamas tribe
called PoA ;i:)oA , went to St. Paul in February; he
saw there the orphan boys in charge of the Catholic
mission, some Indian families and other persons,
numbering over 15. He assisted at the daily exer-
cises and explanation of the Catholic Ladder, He
was a Methodist, and the Corypheus of the sect, but
on looking at the Ladder and seeing the crooked road
of Protestantism made by men in the 16th century, he
at once, abjured Methodism, to embrace the straight
road made by Jesus Christ ; and returning home he
invited the missionary to visit his tribe.

The Vicar General was pleased with the invitation .
He left St. Paul on March 11th, to meet Father
Demers at Vancouver, and he stopped on his way at
the Wapato Lake, which is but a few miles below the
Clackamas river, where the Indians of the Clackamas
tribes were assembled to dig the Wapato root, (a kind
of potatoe) on the right shore of the Wallamette. He
was received by chief Foh poh, and gave the tribe a
mission of 4 days with the usual exercises of the ex-
planation of the Catholic Ladder, etc. Mass* was
celebrated on Sunday 14th and following days. That

120 SKETCHES OF THE

great celebration was astonishing to them. Although
they had been for two years under the teaching of
Bro. Perkins, till the fall of 1840, and under that of
Bro. Waller since then, they listened to the mission-
ary for four days with pleasure. The fruits, of the
mission were the baptism of 11 children and an adult,
in danger of death. It w^as also the beginning of
their abandonment of Methodism. He reached Van-
couver on the 15th. On returning from thence, March
24th, he gave them two other days, celebrated Mass
on the 25th, baptized an adult, the wife of chief
Wesamiis in danger of death on the 26th, and reached
St. Paul on Saturday 27th, after an absence of 17
days. Chief Fohpoh returned to St. Paul, in April
in order to learn more, and strenghten his faith. He
returned after 8 days hence with a Ladder, a red flag,
bearing a cross, to be hoisted on Sunday. He was
overjoyed.

One of the items sent to Quebec, Canada, was :
''from March 1840 to March 1841, were performed :
Baptisms 510 ; marriages 12, burials 11, communions
60 ; one abjuration at St. Paul. Of the 510 baptisms
233 were made by the Vicar General at Nesqualy and
Whidby Island ; 164 by Father Demers at Chinook,
Cowlitz and Colville missions ; the rest, 113, at Van-
couver and St. Paul. Of the 510 baptisms, about
410 Indians, 100 whites and 40 adults."

The Wallamette Fall Indian village was on the
west bank below the fall. Its chief w^as Wesamiis.
The time to visit having arrived, the Vicar General
left St. Paul, after the celebration of Easter, and ar-
rived there on April 29th. On his arrival, he made

CATHOLIC CHURCH IN OREGON. 121

known to the chief the object of his visit. The proud
chief answered : ''Begone ! Away, away with you :
we don't want you/' Such a rough reception did not
discourage the missionaiy. He soon learned that the
chief had been very much offended because the Clack-
amas tribe had been visited before his own. On ex-
planation, he became calmer, and, at last, seemed to
be satisfied. Then began a mission of 7 days of hard
work ; the missionary being obliged to run every day
after these lazy Indians, to bring them to his tent,
and assist at the several exercises. The holy Mass
was celebrated on the 3rd day, a Sunday, and the
following days. The sight of the altar, vestments,
sacred vessels, and great ceremonies were drawing
their attention a great deal more than the cold, una-
vailable and lay service of Bro. Waller. There seemed
to be more attention given to the ringing of the bell,
and the mission exercises. The missionary had at
last the consolation to see the poor Indians make the
sign of the cross, say the offering of the heart, call
the 7 medicines, sing a short prayer before and after
meals, and also the Chinook canticles. 11 children
were baptized and 9 families out of ten had been res-
cued from Bro. Waller. On the fourth day of the
mission arrived JPohpoh with some of his people. He
complained very much that when his flag was hoisted
on Sunday, Mr. Waller pulled it down to the great
displeasure, even of those of his own sect. On an-
other day there came some Indians of Clatsop. On
seeing the altar, ornaments and vestments, they said:
*'Mr. Frost is far from showing us such things.''
That same day an Indian reported that Keiinsno ohiet

122 SKETCHES OF THE

of the Indians below Vancouver, said to his people :
* 'Follow the priest if you like, for myself, I am too
bad, I am unable to change. I will die the same.''
Additional Incidents in 1840.
The following incidents showing the dispositions of
the Indians are worthy of being mentioned: A
Snohomish chief came to Cowlitz in the fall, to see
the priest and tell him that the timber for a house of
prayer, recommended by the Black gown, had been
prepared and was ready for erection. He came to
have a priest to direct the work. He was much dis-
appointed in being obliged to return home alone.
Harkely, a chief from Yakima, came down to St.
Paul in the fall, with his family and some of his peo-
ple. After three weeks of instruction, he returned
home with a; chaplet, a cross, some images and a
Catholic Ladder, and used to explain it to his people
on a Sunday. A chief from O'Kanagan sent word to
St. Paul, asking what to do; that he was ready to
come down with his people next spring, if so recom-
mended. A Priest's Rapids chief, on the Columbia,
<}ame down to St. Paul in the fall, with his wife,
three children and a brother-in-law. He passed the
winter there, got instructed, learned his prayers, and
was baptized, under the name of Joseph, with his
family. Father Demers gave a mission of nine eays
to the O'Kanagan Indians, on returning from Colville.
On November 20th. 1840, he blessed and occupied a
new house at Cowlitz. From that date, the log chapel
ceased to be his lodging place. It was made more
decent by ceiling the sanctuary with mats and orna-
menting the altar table with vases.

catholic church in oregon. 1215

Various Missions in 1841.

From his Mission at Wallamette falls, the Vicar
General went, on May 6th, to the Clackamas tribe,,
which he had already visited in March, at the Wajjeto
lake. The usual daily exercises were continued at
the ringing of the bell for nine days. Bro. Waller came
and called him an intruder. His Evmigelical Ladder
was brought near the Catholic one ; the Indians pro-
nounced themselves in favor of the latter; twelve
lodges were gained. Being obliged to return to St.
Paul on the 15th, Eev. M. Demers, being at Van.
couver, came to replace him. He continued the
mission for two weeks, giving some days to the Wal-
amette tribe and the rest to that of the Clackamas.
It was on that occasion that Wesamus^ the Corypheus
of Bro, Waller was gained.

From the Clackamas, Father Demers returned to
Vancouver, to administer to the Brigades of north and
south, after which he went home to teach catechism.
And as the Colville mission m as being omitted this
year, because of Father De Smet being expected to
come down that way, and it had been resolved that
Fathe]; Demers would go this year to the Sound, ho
started on August 11th, went to Nesqualy and
thence to the bay. He visited many tribes, besides
those seen by the Vicar General; he traveled
from one nation to another, accompanied by chief
TdalaJcmn and many other great chiefs. His travel-
ing was a triumphal one, surrounded sometimes by
600 and other times by 3,000 Indians, who, hostile to
each other, were peacable in the presence of the

124 . SKETCHES OF THE

Hack gown. He often passed whole days in
teaching, with a Ladder 10 by 2J feet, these poor
Indians so desirous of heavenly things, and continu-
ing late at night to sing, pray and hear the harangues
of the chiefs repeating what they had learned. It
was a beautiful and consoling spectacle to see tribes
who had never seen the black gmon, able to sign,them*
selves, sing and pray around the Ladder, when the
priest was giving the hand to a new comer. From
the bay he passed to Fort Langlay on the Fraser
river. There were new triumphs among the KawiU
shins. There ended his mission, and on September
24th, he was at home, having made 765 baptisms,
and been 44 days absent.

In the beginning of June, Commodore Wilkes left
Vancouver on a visit to the Willamette valley, and
took dinner with the Vicar General at his residence
at St. Paul. He told him that on seeing a cross on
Whitby Island, he called it the Cross Island, The
Vicar General having promised Father Demers that
he would visit Cowlitz during his absence, started
June 14th, for that place. On returning he gave a
mission of 14 days at Vancouver. It was on that
occasion that Commodore Wilkes, assisted with several
officers of his staff and Dr. McLaughlin , at High Mass
and vespers on a Sunday. It was a solemn day. The
following Sunday, though the Commodore w^as ab-
sent, the ceremony was not less solemn. A house 62
by 25 was raised in March, at St. Paul, to serve as a
hall for the people on Sunday and a lodging for the
priest.

The next mission to be made was that of the Cas-

CATHOLIC CHURCH IN OREGON. 125

cade tribe wliicli had never been visited by the blacli
gown, l^amakoon, its chief, had already been a con-
vert since 1839, at the sight and explanation of the
Catholic Ladder. He had met many times, the
assaults and eiForts of the Methodist preachers, but
all in vain; he remained unmoved. He was glad to
see le plete arrive on September 17th. His tribe
contained from 150 to 200. The daily exercises of
mass, etc., began and was continued for 10 days,
and the poor Indians, in part, began to sing and sign
themselves and to pray. TamaJcoon received a bell
and a Ladder to be used on Sunday. He was able to
speak on it for several hours. Thirty-four children
were baptised.

From the Cascades the Vicar General passed to the
Clackamas, on November 30th. That was his third
visit. It lasted 13 days with the usual exercises. A
high cross was blessed and erected on October 2d.
Bro. Waller, hearing that the Indians were willing
to build a chapel, came and made a noise; all had
left him save a few. Eleven children were baptised;
in all 41, with 30 before. The Vicar General left
them on October 12th for St. Paul.

The Vicar General left St. Paul for the Cowlitz on
November 15th. Meeting at Vancouver Sir George
Simpson, who desired to visit the Canadian settle-
ment, he returned home with him. Sir George
assisted at High Mass and Vespers on Sunday, &nd
seemed to have been pleased with what he had seen
there and at Vancouver. He became convinced at
last of the necessity of granting passage for new
priests and other assistants. Starting again the

126 SKETCHES OF THE

Vicar General reached Cowlitz on December 1st; left
it on thp- Tth; arrived at Vancouver on tlie 10th,
and Clackamas village on the 18th; went to pray at
the foot of the cross with the Indians and the chiefs;
left them well pleased. As the river was much
swollen by the heavy and unusual rains, he met great
dangers at Eock Island, above the falls. He being
on shore to lighten the canoe, the canoe capsized,
and eight persons were struggling in the water; all
were saved as by a miracle. The Vicar General
reached home on December 23d; but left for Van-
couver on the 27th, to attend the funeral services of
Mr. Kitron, who having been brought to Vancouver
in 1840, and made his abjuration and received holy
communion and other sacraments, and died happy.
The Vicar General returned home on the eve of New
Year's day.

Incidents in 1841.

Rev. Father P. J. De Smet, S. J. returned to the
Rocky Mountains in the Spring of 1841, with the
Rev. Fathers Mengarini and Point, and founded St.
Mary's mission among the Flatheads. The Cowlitz
settlement had the happiness to possess the Blessed
Sacrament in its little chapel from Jan. 6. Harhely,
the Yakima chief, who visited St. Paul last fall, ar-
rived at Cowlitz on Jan. 25, with some Indians of
O'Kanagan, and a son of the Spokane chief, called
La grosse Tete, the Corypheus of Bro. Eells, 10 in all.
They had come by way of Nesqualy, and hence
through the long portage, had been stripped of their
blankets and ordered back by the Chehalis, which

CA^THOLIC CHURCH IN OREGON. 127

they refused to accede to. The son of La grosse
Tete had left his home in spite of his father to be-
come a Catholic. They came to get instructed.
They went home via Vancouver and the Columbia.
The little chief des Chaudieres (Colville) was an
apostle among his people, with the Catholic Ladder
in his hands, since the departure of the priest.

Missionary Labors in 1842.

The two missionaries met again this year, at Van-
couver, after a separation of 3 months and a half.
Rev, M. Demers came first in three days of bad
weather, and arrived on Feb. 23d. He began a mis-
sion of 27 days, with the -usual forenoon, afternoon,
and evening exercises; after which, leaving on Mon-
day of Holy Week, and experiencing three other
days of bad weather, he reached home after an ab-
sence of 32 days.

The V. G. came later to meet his dear companion,
and arrived on Tuesday of Passion Week, March 15;
and starting on Thursday of the same week, and ex-
periencing bad weather also, he reached St. Paul on
Saturday, the eve of Palm Sunday.

One of the items he sent to Quebec, Canada, was :
''from March 1841 to March 1842, were performed;
baptisms, 965; marriages, 12; burials, 21; communi-
ons, 115. Of the 965 baptisms, 765 were made on
Puget Sound, all Indians, save 15 Whites, at Fort
► Langley, 69 at the Clackamas, Wallamette fall and
Cascades mission, 70 at Vancouver, 24 at the Cow-
litz, and 37 at St. Paul.

Having given the great festival of Easter and three

128 SKETCHES OF THE

weeks of the Passover time to the faithful of St.
Paul, the V. G. gave his first outside missionary la-
bors to his dear Indians of the Wallamette falls.
Arriving there on April 20th, and notwithstanding
the cold reception he received, he began his mission-
ary labors which he continued for fifteen days. The
poor Indians were very indolent; the ringing of the
bell drew few of them in the beginning; they had
forgotten all they had learned before. Having no
time to go and visit the Clackamas Indians, on the
present occasion, they were invited to come to the
Fall; several of them came. By jDersevering in his
efforts he began to gain their confidence, and they
became more attentive. He made six baptisms, in-
cluding two adults in danger of death. The reason
of their apathy was the distraction in which they
were involved by the immigration of the whites; 15
families of them had crossed the Clackamas river
during his mission at that i)lace, in Nov. 1841. And,
as the Wallamette fall was an attractive place, many
of them began to settle there. Hence the danger
for the poor Indians. The fruits of the mission
were not so consoling as formerly.

On May 4th, the V. G. went fiom the Wallamette
fall to Vancouver to receive 8 cases which had ar-
rived from London; and from thence returned to St.
Paul for the festival of Pentecost, and Corpus Chris-
ti, falling on May 26. Dr. McLaughlin paying ,a
visit to St. Paul at that time, assisted at high mass
and procession, with much edification; having visited
the whole colony, he encouraged the settlers to con-
tinue, and returned home much satisfied.

CATHOLIC CHUKCH IN OREGON. 129

Arrival or Father De Smet, S. J.

Kev. M. Demers returned to Vancouver in the
middle of May, to attend the v^ants of that mission
and those of the Brigades of the north and south.
He had been there but a few weeks, when Father
De Smet arrived at Vancouver from Colville, which
he reached early in tlie spring. In crossing a rapid
below Colville his boat was capsized, but he reached
the shore in safety, suffering only from the loss of
his baggage. Rev. M. Demers brought him to St
Paul; he spent 8 days with the V. G., sung high mass
on Sunday, addressed words of exhortation to the
congregation, and expressed himself much pleased
with the solemnity of the mass, and vesper service;
especially in the singing; of the Catholic Ladder he
said: ''That plan will be adopted by the missions oi
the whole world." Here he returned to Vancouver
with Rev. M. Demers; the V. G. soon followed them
to deliberate on the interests of the great mission of
the Pacific Coast.

The missions to be attended this year, were those
of Chinook Point, Vancouver, Cascades, Clacka-
mas, Wallamette Fall, and the Sound, whose tribes
were so famished for heavenly things : Witness their*
running after the BlackgoiOH, in 1840 and 1841, and
their repeated calls for a priest ever since. The
name of another mission was presented to the coun--
cil, that of the New Caledonia, now British Columbin^^
which was threatened to be visited by the Presbyte-
rians of Walla Walla.

All things being considered, the resolve was that
the New Caledonia mission should be attended be-

130 SKETCHES OF THE

fore all, and that Father De Smet should start for
St. Louis and Belgium to bring temporal and perso-
nal efficient means. Kev. M. Demers accepting
heartily the long and hard mission of New Caledonia,
prepared himself for the journey and winter there.
The two missionaries started with the Brigades of
the Porteurs on June 29th, and separated from each
other at Walla Walla. The V. G. left alone to ad-
minister to the wants of the extensive mission, re-
. turned soon to St. Panl, to teach catechism for the
first communion, which he put off after the harvest
for new instruction.

The Cowlitz mission which had lost its beloved
missionary, needed to be consoled. The V. G. left St.
Paul on Aug. 12th, passed a few days at Vancouver
and reached Cowlitz on the 18th. He remained there
twenty days, teaching the white women and children
for the first communion. The Indians had also a
share of his time. lie baptized ten of their children.
In the midst of his occupation he heard that a wo"
man was sick at Nesqualy, and had but a few days to
live. Leaving at 4 p. m. on Friday with a guide, and
travelling a distance of 25 ieagues, he reached the
house of the poor sick woman on the following day
at 6 p. m. : gave her the consolation of religion, bap-
tized her child, passed the night there, and went to
the Fort to hear the Confessions of the men, and
starting on Sunday at 4 p. m. he reached Cowlitz on
Monday at 6 p. m. The church raised on JunQ 17th,
1840, was not yet finished for want of lumber.

On leaving Cowlitz, Sept. 6th, and reaching St.
Paul on the 10th, after an absence of 30 days, he

CATHOLIC CHURCH IN OREGON. 131

was accompanied by tlie great chief Snehomish Se-
halapahen, who fought the Klalams in 1840, and
came out victorious, said he, by virtue of his chap-
let and Catholic Ladder, He had come to Cowlitz
twice last spring, and had accompanied Father De-
mers to Vancouver in May, expecting he would bring
him with him to the Bay, and when he saw him go
ing elsewhere, and wa^ obliged to return home alone,
he went away with a stricken heart. It was the third
time he was coming to be instructed and baptized.
He was much pleased to see the churches and servi-
ces on Sunday at Vancouver and St. Paul. On arri-
ving there, the V. G. recommended the catechism
for the first communion. /| ^ £j ^^,^

The 17th of September^as a day of great rejoicing
for the V. G. in receiving and embracing his dear
new confreres. Rev. A. Langlois and J. B. Z. Bol-
duc, arriving from Canada. They had been over a
year on their journey, for having left Boston on Aug.
10th, doubled Cape Horn on Dec. 5th, and touched
at Valparaiso, Gambler Islands, Tahiti, Honolulu,
they crossed the Columbia river bar on Sept. 12th.
When the Bishop of Quebec was refused a passage in
the canoes of the Hudson Bay Company for other
priests, for Oregon, he sent them by sea. Sir George
Simpson avowed to the V. G. in 1841, that Mr.
Beaver, the ex-chaplain, was the cause of the refusal.
The following day being Sunday, a high mass was
celebrated with Deacon and sub-Deacon, for the first
time in Oregon, and followed witH a Te> Dewn, On
Sunday Sept. 30th, took place , with great solemnity,
the first communion of those found prepared.

132 ' SKETCHES OF THE

The faithful at Vancouver were complaining of not
being well attended; time was wanting to the mis-
sionaries. Now that their number was increased,
they were to have a better share. Therefore the V.
G-. leaving St. Paul in charge of Rev. Bolduc, started
with Rev. Langlois and reached the mission on Oct.
7th. The instruction of the ladies of the Fort was
given to Rev. Langlois; the V. G. kept for himself
that of the women and children of the village. After
three weeks of daily teaching, seven ladies of the
fort and two women of the village were found
able to make their first communion, which took place
on Sunday Oct. 30th, for the first time at Vancouver,
with great solemnity before a large congregation.
This being done, Rev. Langlois was sent to St. Paul,
and Rev. Bolduc to Cowlitz, to attend those missions;
the V. G. remaining at Fort Vancouver. Sehalapahen
who attended the mission at Vancouver followed Fa-
ther Bolduc, who completed his instruction and bap-
tized him.

The Cascades and Clackamas tribes had not been
visited for over one year. They had been exjoosed
all the while to the seduction of the preachers telling
them: "The priests have forsaken you.'' They did
not need twelve months to forget what they had
learned in a few weeks. Nevertheless, their visiting
the Blackgown from time to time was a proof of their
loving him still. As to the Clackamas, it was impos-
sible to give them a visit. The Cascade Indians had
a better chance, as their moving yearly, in October,
on the left shore of the Columbia, nearly opposite
Vancouver,' brought them near to thex^riest. There-
fore the V. G., dividing his time between the women

CATHOLIC CHUKCH IN OREGON. 133

of the village and those Indians, gave the former the
forenoon, and the latter the afternoon for several
weeks. This met with many difficulties, such as the
crossing of the river, the division of the tribe into two
camps, afar from each other, and the ice of the up-
per Columbia covering the river. Nevertheless he
had the consolation to make 15 baptisms. Another
great consolation he met on Nov. 18th, was that of
receiving the profession of faith of Governor Mc
Laughlin to the Catholic faith, as explained else-
where. He made his first communion at midnight
high mass, at the head of 38 communicants. The
office had never been so solemn, as to chant, music,
and decoration, as on that night. The number of
first communions made in the Fall, was; 13 at Van-
couver, 7 at St. Paul, and 4 at Cowlitz. Thus ended
1842.

MissioN.ARY Labors in 1843.

After a residence of three months and a half, the
Vicar General left Vancouver for St. Paul, on Jan.
18th, 1843. When on his way he stopped to get a
paddle, he also baptized a dying child. Kev.
Langlois, availing himself of the presence of the
Vicar General, started on Jan. 30th, to see his trav-
eling companion. He was three weeks on his jour-
ney. On returning he met a heavy rain, and the
high flood of Feb. 13th, which exposed him to great
suffering and dangers.

Chief Factor Douglas, being on his way to found

Victoria, on the south end of Vancouver Island,

started with an expedition of 22 men, and invited Rev.

134 SKETCHES OF THE

Balduc to accompany him. Having the consent of
the Vicar General he left Cowlitz on March 7th, with
the expedition for Nesqualy, where the steamer
Beaver was waiting. Leaving on the 13th, she reach-
ed her destination on the 14th, where Rev. Bolduc
met a large number of Indians. On Sunday the 19th,
he celebrated mass in a repository, before the men
and over 1200 Indians, and baptized 102 children.
And giving up his design of going farther north, he
bought a large canoe, crossed the Bay in two days,
reached Whitby on the 25th, and fixed his tent near
the cross erected in 1840. The Skatchates and other
tribes received him in open arms. They built him a
house 28x25. He taught them during 8 days,
baptized 173 children, and leaving on April 3d, he
got home on the 6th, after an absence of 31 days.
Ill sending his report he begged to be allowed to go
and found that mission.

The Vicar General left St. Paul for Vancouver on
March 13th, and bought a lot for $225, at Wallamette
Fall to build a chapel for the Indians. One of the
items he sent to Canada, w^as: from March, 1842 to
March, 1843, were made 688 baptisms, 28 marriages,
26 burials. Of 688 baptisms, 447 were made in New
Caledonia, 98 at St. Paul, 86 at Vancouver, and 57
at Cowlitz. By a recapitalation from 1838, were
made, 2,666 baptisms, 148 marriages, 86 burials.
The Vicar General left Vancouver for St. Paul during
Passion Week and returned on April 18th, the eve of
Palm Sunday.

Rev. M. Demers was not expected to have any
chance lo come back before the return of the Briefade

SKETCHES OF

of the North. It was therefore with the greatest
surprise that on entering his room, on Holy Thursday
evening, April 13th, the Vicar General met him
there. Sweet and moving was the embrace after a
separation of nearly nine months and a half.
Leaving Vancouver June 29th, 1842, he reached Fort
Thompson, Aug. 10th, Fort Alexander, on Fraser
Eiver, Aug. 23d, Fort Stuart; on Stuart Lake, 300
leagues from Vancouver, the residence of Chief Fac-
tor Ogden, the commander of the Brigade, on Sept.
16th. lie celebrated a high mass there on the 18th.
Returning home, he reached Fort Alexander, Sept.
24th, had a chapel built by the Indians; celebrated
in it Dec. 4th; took his lodging in it on Jan. 3d,
1843. He learned two languages, translated the
canticles and prayers in their idioms, and taught
them to the Indians; and left them able to pray,
sing and explain the Catholic Ladder, Hard was
their separation. Availing himself of the invitation
oifered him by Chief Factor Ogden, he started with
him on horseback, in three or four feet of snow, on
Feb. 21st, from Fort Alexander; reached Fort
Thompson, March 1st, passed 13 days at Okanagant
starving, and waiting for a boat; came hence on
horseback along the Columbia to Snake Eiver; hence
by boat to Walla Walla and Vancouver, 44 days from
Fort Thompson. In going and coming he had en-
countered many trials, dangers and fatigues, some-
times extreme. The Vicar General preached on
Good Friday, and Father Demers on Easter Sunday,
April 16th.

Rev. Bolduc, arriving from Cowlitz on April 19th,

136 CATHOLIC CHURCH IN OREGON.'

left for St. Paul with Kev. M. Demers, who preached
there on Sunday, 23d , and returning to Vancouver,
they both started for Cowlitz, on April 27th, to pre-
pare themselves for the mission of Whitby. On
May 10th, they were en route for Nesqualy with 2
men and 11 horses, 7 of them with packages; they
reached Whitby on May 25th, 1843.

Rev, Langlois being put in charge of Cowlitz,
Vancouver, Cascades, Wallamette Fall, and Clacka-
mas Indians, left St. Paul May 17th, for his post.
He succeeded to finish the church erected in 1840;
and began to celebrate mass in it on Pentecost day,
June, 4th. He visited several times, the Indians of
the mountains, living on the route to Nesqualy.
From Cowlitz he came to Vancouver in the beginning
of June to attend the Brigades of the North and*
South. He went to the Cascades in the beginning
of July, and gave a mission of 8 days to the Indians
of that place. Passing hence to the Wallamette
Fall and Clackamas tribes, he spent several weeks
among them. The plat surveyed in Dec. 1842, at
the Fall, had been called Oregon City; it was grow-
ing rapidly, to no benefit to the Clackamas and Wal-
lamette Fall Indians. Hence the little success of
Rev. A Langlois, who consoled himself by the hojDe
of the conversion of Walter Pomeroy, a pioneer car-
penter, who built the Cathedral at Oregon City in
1845.

On reaching the Clackamas Indian village. Rev. A.
Langlois found the cross erected in 1841 had dis- *
appeared. It had been cut down by order of the
Methodist preacher Waller, to the great sorrow of

CATHOLIC CHURCH IN OREGON. 137

the Indians. Yes, the cross which shows the excess
of the love of the Son of God for man ; the cross by
which Jesus Christ, our Blessed Kedeemer, redeemed
the world ; the cross made known from that of the
two thieves by a miracle ; the cross .shown to Con-
stantine, in heaven, with the words : ^^hoc signo
vinces," the cross which convei^ted the whole world
from paganism, and which is a terror to the devils,
the cross, whose sign shall appear at the last day,
that cross is a scandal to the Methodist minister,
Waller ; he' has it in horror, as the devils, he cannot
bear the sight of it ; he ordered it to be cut down,
and pretended to teach the poor Indians Christ cruel*
fed, without showing them a cross ! ! ! Great God 1
What subversion of ideas and judgment in the sect!
'\^yiat destruction of saving doctrine ! What turning
upside down of common good sense and true religion
rather unfortunably too well typified by the turning-
upside down of a table adorning the short belfry,
(short faith) of the Methodist churches !

The Vicar General in going to St. Paul, to take
the place of Rev. A. Langlois, taught catechism
from May 1st to July 21st on which day 18 persons
made their first Communion. Extremely great was
the surprise of the Vicar General when at the end of
June, he saw Eev. M. Demers arriving at St. Paul
from Whitby which he had left with Rev. Bolduc
after one month of residence. That step had
not been taken rashly, but on the most weighty
reasons, which the Vicar General approved, and
which it ^ould be too long to explain here. Never-
theless Rev. Bolduc was ordered to go and pass the

"ISR SKETCHES OF THE

summer with chief Tslalakum in order to learn the
idiom. But the rumors of war, induced him to re-
turn from Nesqualj. The plan of the Whitbay
mission being postponed till the arrival of Father
JJe Smet, in its stead was announced that of opening
a school at St. Paul in the fall. A second catechism
l)egun by the Vicar General at St. Paul, after the
harvest, was continued bj Rev. Langlois, who on
October 19, received 19 persons to their communions.
The news came in October that two other Jesuit
"Fathers, De Vos and Hockens, sent from St. Louis
hj Father De Smet, had arrived for the Flathead
iind Coeur d'Alene missions ; they had come with a
caravan of 700 souls. Dr. McLaughlin, on a second
visit to St. Paul, in October, approached the holy
table on a Sunday at the head of a number of the
faithful. On his return to Oregon City, the Vicar
General accompanied him and choose a block for the
Church. Few weeks after, Walter Pomeroy, whose
wife was L'ish, came to St. Paul, made his profession
of faith, had his marriage blessed, children baptized
tind returned happy to the Twalatin Plains.

The 17th of October was a day of great rejoicing
at St. Paul, on account of the solemn blessing of St.
Joseph's college after Mass chanted by the Vicar Gen-
eral before a large congregation. On that day, there
entered as boarders, 30 boys, sons of the farmers
save one Indian boy, the son of a chief. Rev. A.
Langlois was the director ; Mr. King principal and
teacher of English, and Mr. Bilodeau, assistant, and
teacher of French. Several acres east of the College
.'^as seen, in way of erection, a building of 60x30 for

CATHOLIC CHURCH IN OREGON. 138"^

the Sisters, expected to arrive with Father De Smet..
Faithful to his promise of sending assistants, made in .
1842, Sir George Simpson granted a passage in the
canoe of the Hudson Bay Company, to five men and.
two women, who arrived with the Brigade on Nov..
28th. Rev. M. Demers, after attending Cowlitz witt:
Rev. Bolduc, left it to come and remain at Vancouver,
which he left in the beginning of December to return
to Cowlitz and the Vicar General leaving Rev. Lan-
glois in charge of St. Paul, reached Vancouver Dec
21st to give the faithful of that place, the festival of
midnight mass, Christmas and Circumcision. It
was during this year that Hon. Peter H. Burnett^,
(afterwards Governor of California) while attending^
mass on Christmas Eve, merely as a spectator, wa&
so moved by the solemnity of the service that he be-
came a zealous convert to the Catholic Churcli,
Thus ended 1843o

Erection of the Oregon Mission into a Vicariate
Apostolic, December 1st 1843.

Whilst the Missionaries of Oregon w^ere doing
their best to promote the spiritual interest of the
mission confided to their care, the Bishops of Quebec
and Baltimore looking further and to a greater
solid good, and acting in concert, earnestly reconi—
mended*the Holy See to erect their mission into a Vic-
ariate Apostolic. The Holy See acquiescing to their
desires erected said mission a Vicariate Apostolic by '
a brief of Dec. 1 1843 ; and appointed the Vicar Gen--
eral F. N. Blanchet its Vicar Apostolic with the title
of Philadeljyhia. The Vicar General was far from ex--

140 SKETCHES OF THE

pecimg such a result *^o soon, the notice of which
reached him but on Nov. 4., 1844, to his great sur-
prise and sorrow.

Missionary Labors in 184t4.

In January, 1844, at Vancouver, the Vicar General
baptizecl ten adults and blessed eight marriages
after one month of instruction. As the town called
Oregon City contained in 1842 60 houses and two
Catholic families, and had a good prosiDCct of in-
creasing, the Vicar General thought it was time to
provide it with a missionary. And as the right ma^i
for the place was Rev. M. Demers, who was at Cow-
litz, the Vicar General left Vancouver on Feb. lOth,
for that mission, which he had not visited for a year
and a half. On his way he visited several Indian
lodges, baptized two children, one of whom was very
sick, distributed biscuits to those who had been
baptized before, and thereby made them and their
parents happy. The Vicar General and Rev. M.
Demers left Cowlitz on the 26th, and anived at
Oregon City on the 1st of March, after a painful
journey of five da^^s. Rev. M. Demers on his arrival
took possession of a house, rented from Dr. Newell at
$10 per month, and the Vicar General returned to
Vancouver on the following day. Rev. M. Demers
had arrived at Oregon City, under strange circum-
stances; Bro. "Waller having lost all credit among
his countrymen had left for parts unknown. March
3rd, being Sunday, he kej)t service before and after
noon, and celebrated the first mass ever said in the
city; the chapel was found too small for the occasion.

CATHOLIC CHURCH IN OREGON. 14 1

There was a fight at Oregon City, on Monday,
March 4th, between some Indians of the Molalle
river and some Americans, in which one Indian was
killed and two Americans wounded. They were
both sent to Vancouver for treatment, and both
died, G. W. Le Breton, on the 7th, and the other on
the 16th. Le Breton had become a convert to the
Catholic faith at St. Paul, in 1842, but seeing he
could not get the girl he expected, he withdrew
gradually from the church and apostatized. During
his short sickness, the Vicar General visited him
often, and used all his zeal to bring him back to re-
pentance, but all in vain; he died a Protestant, and
was buried by Chief Factor Douglas. The fight was
an unfortunate and disgraceful affair, brought on by
the indiscretion of two white men.

The Vicar General left Vancouver for Oregon City
and St. Paul, March 28th. Having settled some
business for St. Joseph's College, and the Mission
claim, which was surveyed by Jesse Applegate, and
returning reached Vancouver on April 3rd. April 5th
being Good Friday, Chief Factor Douglas assisted at
the office and came down to the adoration of the
cross with Governor McLaughlin. On returning to
Cowlitz the Vicar General baptized 7 Indian children
on the Columbia and Cowlitz rivers; and gathering
those formerly baptized, he gave them biscuits. He
found Father Bolduc in good health. Some business
having been attended to, he returned to Vancouver
on the 24th. Leaving on the 27th for St. Paul he
sang high mass at Oregon City on Sunday the 28th,
reaching St. Paul on the following Tuesday with

^'42 SKETCHES OF THE

Fatlier Demers, who after visiting together, saw the
Mnission saw and grist mills and the Sisters' house in
course of erection, returned home, while the Vicar
^General remained till June 20th, on business. On
"May 13th he blessed and erected a high cross on the

■spot chosen for the new church to be built in 1846,
On Sunday, June 9th, the procession of the Blessed
Sacrament took iDlace at St. Paul, which was made

* very solemn by the college scholars singing and
performing figures before the Blessed Sacrament,
daring the procession Kev. M. Demers went on June
10th to administer to the Brigades at Vancouver,
which the Vicar General reached on June 22nd after
an absence of fifty-eight days.

On July 12th, the Vicar General left Vancouver
for Cowlitz, and arrived there on Sunday, 14th.
He ^aid a low mass. On his return he met in the
Oolumbia river, the English frigate, LaModeste, Capt.
Bailey. The Captain being desirous of visiting the
Waiiamette Valley, left Vancouver with the Vicar
General, Chief Factor Douglas, and several officers
of his staff for St. Paul. They all attended the high
mass on Sunday, July 2lst, and seemed to be very
much pleased to see such a service. They lodged at
the College, where there had been on July, 18th an
examination of the pupils, before a large assemblage,
with great credit to the teachers and scholars,
licaving on Monday on a tour to the upper valley,
Rijv. M. Demers accompanied them. Bev. A. Lan-
glois left St. Paul to i)ay a visit to the Jesuit Father
of the Eocky Mountains on July 28th; he returned
on Sept. 6th, much worn out by a journey of 42 days

CATHOLIC CHURCH IN OREGON. 143

on horseback. He had his feet much swollen for a
time. He returned with Father Mengarini on hear-
ing of the arrival of Father De Smet by sea. Father
Joset, Zerbinatti, and Soderini, three new Jesuit
Fathers, were sent from St. Louis to the Rocky
Mountains this year.

Arrival of Father De Smet by Sea.

The long expected return of Rev. Father De Smet
came at last. Leaving Anvers, Belgium, on Jan. 9th,
1844, in a sailing vessel called the L' infatigaUe , he
met with great dangers at Cape Horn, touched at
Valparaiso and Callao, spent four days outside the
bar waiting for a pilot, passed the bar on July 31st,
running straight east through the south channel,
something never attempted before^ came to a pass of
2J fathoms of Avater, and arrived at Astoria in the
evening. All who saw the course of the ship thought
that she would be wrecked, the captain and passen-
gers fearing the same. Father De Smet arrived at
Vancouver in a canoe on Sunday the 4th, , at 6 a. m.,
the ship arriving on the 6th. Father De Smet was «-^
accompanied by four new Fathers; Rev. Fathers
Ravalli, Accolti, Nobili, Vercruisse, some lay broth-
ers and six Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur.

The news of his arrival reaching the Vicar General , /
at St. Paul on the 10th, he was at Vancouver on the i/'H£^
following day; and the religious caravan reached St.
Paul on the 17th,.^nd took up their quarters in the //V/
college. On Sunday the 18th, the Vicar General sang ^ /
a high mass before an affluence^of people, anxious to

144 SKETCHES OF THE

see the Sisters and new Fathers. On the following
Thursday was sung a mass of thanksgiving. Father
De Smet took a land claim on lac Ignace^ and had in
a few months a house built on the high land near the
lake, for the residence of his fathers. Father De
Smet started on Oct. 6 for the Kocky Mountains;
from whence Father De Vos arrived at St. Paul on
the 13th, on horseback, bringing with him two lay
brothers. The Sisters entered into their convent on
Oct. 19th, and had a mass celebrated in the interior
chapel the following day; Fathers De Vos and Ac-
colti entered their new house called St. Ignace.

On November 4:th two Briefs arrived, one Brief
making the mission of Oregon into a Vicariate
Apostolic, and the other Brief appointing the
Vicar General, F. N. Blanchet, to the position,
w^ith the title of Philadelphia, which, on representa-
tion to Rome from Quebec, was changed into that of
Drasa, on May 4th, 1845. The addresses of his let-
ters from Canada betraying his case, felicitations
were tendered to the Vicar General, but he refused
them for several days. His consultation being an-
swered, it was useless to refuse, so he gave his con-
sent on the 8th, and made a resolution to go to Can-
ada to receive his episcopal consecration from the
Archbishop of Quebec, and hence to go and visit
Rome.

Rev. M. Demers was appointed vicar general and
administrator of the vicariate apostolic during the
absence of the Bishop elect, by letters of Nov. 25th.
A mandate was issued, and on Dec. 5th, 1844 the
Bishop elect crossed the bar on board of the Bark

CATHOLIC CHURCH IN OREGON. 145

Columbia, Captain Duncan, en route for Canada, via
England. The Belgian bark, IJinfaligahle^ was
detained by contrary winds until the following
day.

The Fight at Oregon City, March 4th., 1844. Ex-
tract FROM THE Missionary Report of the Vicar
General in 1844, on the Occasion.

'' We arrived from Cowlitz to the Wallamette fall
on March 2nd, after a painful journey of 5 days. After
having installed the pastor of Oregon City into his
house, I returned to Vancouver. I soon learned
what a crowd assisted at the Mass and Vespers of the
first Sunday, March 3rd. The evil-one did not allow
the Missionary to enjoy long this fine outset, for the
following day the human blood began to stream in a
fight in which an Indian instantly succumbed and
two Americans were wounded. Alas ! what a mis-
fortune ! what shall be the consequences? And
for what that broil ? For false reports. One Klika-
tat Indian had been killed, he, his two wives and a
baptized child, in the upper Clackamas river. Some
one falsely accused the chief of the Molalis river In-
dians of the crime. A most certain]report, even among
the Indians, was that the massacre had been com-
mitted by two slaves whom their master had mal-
treated too much, and who had been seen returning to
their land with the booty of their master. Dr. White
who gave credit to the first report, had promised a
reward of $100 for the apprehension of said chief,
living or dead. The chief of the Molalis did not ig-

146 SKETCHES OF THK

nore what had appened. Conscious of his innocence,
but well armed, he had come to the tow^n, accompan-
ied with four men. He crossed over to the Indian
side. During that time, there came the question to
apprehend him. Dr. McLoughlin's store clerk re-
marked : ''That Indian is a good man, you should
not molest him ; if you do, you will repent !" No
matter, the Doctor's secretary (Le Breton) and a
Mulatto persisted ; and asked him to surrender on
his return. He refuses; they insist; he defends him-
self ; the Mulatto is ordered to shoot, the shot starts,
and the Indian is wounded. He rushes on his ag-
gressors, who run away. He was nearly overtaking
the secretary, who, turning, seized the muzzle of the
pistol with his right hand, the shot starts, and enters
and passes through his arm ; the Indian staggers
and falls, and the Mulatto finishes him with the butt
end of his gun. The four other Indians begin to
shoot with guns or arrows ; Americans come at the
noise, and return fire, but without catching them,
aud having two men wounded. The first, Le Breton,
died in three days. There was found two balls in his
elbow and the wad further. The second died 12
days after from the shot of an arrow in the left arm.
The shaft had been immediately drawn away, but
the iron remained, which coald not be extracted but
after death. Both died in dreadful sufferings. It is '
probable that they were poisoned. The last was but
a spectator; the greater part of the Americans did
not know what w^as the matter."

CA.THOLIC CHURCH IN OREGON. 147

g.S<:tl ER OF RKY. M. D£IIEUS TO THE YI€AR GENERAL.

Oregon City, March 6th, 1844.
Very Kev. Sir : — I did not suffer myself to be intimidated
by the affray of the other day. I heard the musket shots
closely succeeding, but I made light of them, till I saw men
running backward and forward in the streets, loading their
pistols and carbines. I asked what it was? '^An Indian
fight," was the answer. Le Breton has received two ar-
rows, one in the arm and the other in the thigh, I think.
There was such a confusion that 25 Indians as brave and
determined as they were, could have killed all the settlers.
The Indians of the other side 3ay that the deceased had
come to have a talk with the whites, in order to disculpate
himself from the charge made against him. The Mulatto,
Wmslo, on seeing him, said ^*that is the man who would kill
him," and for whose capture Dr. White had promised a re-
ward "of $100, which Le Breton has gained. I have seen
the poor Indian ; he was still breathing. But, O barbar-
ity ! the negro who said it was he who pierced his hat
with a bullet, did pierce him after he was dead ; and, in
the morning, his head had been found split and entirely
separated above the forehead, and the brains still clung to
the axe which had been the instrument for siich savage cru-
elty. HeoTvendum est ! In another letter of March 7th,
to the same, Eev. M. Demers adds: *The settlers seem
to acknowledge they have been too quick, in this unfortu-
nate affair ; but the unlucky deed is over ; it is a true
murder ;- based upon the extremely rash and unjusti-
fiable action of poor Le Breton who will pay dear for his
apostasy and crime."

The merit and gloiy of an historian is to be a true
and faithful narrator of facts. If he fails in this, his
veracity will be doubted in the[most important points.
This being so, what shall be thought of the history

148 SKETCHES OF THE

ofOregonby W. H. Gray, when all will learn how
shamefully he has distorted and falsified the facts
concerning the fight of' March 4th. For it is false
that the Indians of the vicinity of Oregon City made
an attack on the town. It was by no means an at-
tack ; not one of the Clackamas, nor of the Wallam-
ette fall, but five of the Molalis only took part in the
fight. It is false that the Indians commenced the
fight. It is false that the chief was placed under
guard and was killed when attempting to escape.
It is false that the Indians made an attempt to des-
troy the people and town at Wallamette fall. It -is
false that there was any need to stir up the whole
country, to organize for defense, as all the Indian
tribes were never so peaceable as they were then,
having no reason to molest them, as their fisheries,
hunting-places and camas prairies had not yet been
taken away from them. It is false that the Company
had any thing to fear from the Indians; if the fort
was repaired, bastions built, and all other protective
and defensive measures were completed, it was to
defend itself against another kind of savageness.

Missionary Labors in 1845 and 1846.

When the Bishop elect left for Canada, December
1844, the missionary stations were attended as fol-
lows; Cowlitz by Rev. A Langlois, Fort Vancouver
by Father Nobili, Oregon City by Father Accolti,
St. Paul by Vicar General Demers, St. Joseph's Col-
lege by Rev. Z. Bolduc, and the Sisters by Father

CATHOLIC CHURCH IN OREGON. l49

De Vos. According to tiie best calculation, the In-
dian population at that time numbered 110,000, of
which, 6,000 were Christians; about half of them
being at the Rocky Mountains and the remainder in
the lower part of Oregon. The white Catholic pop-
ulation was about 1,000, of which 600 were in the
Wallamette Valley, 100 at Vancouver, 100 at Cow-
litz, and the rest in the various trading posts. The
Jesuit Fathers had four missions at the Eoclvv Moun-
tains in 1843, viz: St. Mary, St. Joseph, St. Peter
and St. Michael: The Coeiir D'Alene was one of
them.

By a letter from administrator Demers, dated Oct,
8th, 1845, and other notes, the Bishop Elect learned
the following: Father Nobili had left in June with
the Brigade of the North for New Caledonia, Father
De Smet visited lower Oregon at the end of June^
Father De Vos had the care of Oregon City and Fort
Vancouver, and Father Accolti was chaplain of the
Sisters at St. Paul. The priest house was finislied
at Oregon City, and the church much advanced.
The church built by Father Verecruisse at La Grande
Prairie was soon to be blessed and opened for di-
vine service. Father Ravalli had left for the Rocky
Mountains. Sixty thousand bricks had been burnt
for the new church at St. PauFs. St. Josej^h's Col-
lege, containing 28 boarders, being too small, had
been enlarged with a second story, by its principal
Father Bolduc. The good religieuses of Notre Dame
de Namur were overburdened with occupations in the
care and teaching 42 little girls, and a chapel meas-
uring 80 X 30 feet was in course of construction for
them.

150 SKETCHES OF THE

The chapel at Oregon City was blessed and opened
for divine service on Septuagesima Sunday, Feb. 8th,
1846, in the presence of a large concourse of Protes-
tants. From that date the church is full on
Sundays, a number of people attending service
through being desirous of seeing the impressive cere-
monies of our church and hear the explanation of its
dogmas. The corner-stone of St. Paul's brick church
was blessed by Vicar General Demers, on May 24:th,
1846, and the church was dedicated and opened for
divine service on Nov. 1st of the same year. It was the
first brick building that was erected in the country,
measuring 100 feet by 45, with wings or chapels of
20 feet, its belfry shows the sign of our redemption,
and stood 84 feet from the ground, At Vancouver,
in 1845, Chief factor Douglas having desired the
erection of a Catholic church, one w^as x^ut up and
shingled. Governor Mc Laughlin was preparing to
leave the Hudson Bay Co., and retire to Oregon City.
*'I was forgetting to say a word or two about the
political state of the country," says the Vicar Gen-
eral Demers; ^'a i)rovisoiy government had been
established, Mr. George Abernethy is Governor, the
Hudson Bay Company joins in with the provisory
government; Vancouver, Cowlitz and Nesqualy form
a district of which chief factor Douglas is the judge
in chief." This vindicates and proves to be false the
charges formerly made that said company was
opposed to a provisory government. If the Hudson
Bay Co. opposed the establishment of a provisory
government in 1841, no one couLI wonder or blame
it, as Commodore Wilkes himself was opposed to it,
on the gTound that it was premature

CATHOLIC CHURCH IN OREGON. 151

On the occasion of the foregoing, we wish to cor-
rect a great mistake made in a lecture by an eminent
judge, saying of Very Eev. F, N. Blanche t and Rev.
M. Demers; ''they were subjects of Great Britain,
and their influence and teaching among the people
was naturally in favor of the authority and interest
of the Hudson Bay Co. They discouraged the early
attempts at the formation of a settlers government in
the country." All this is entirely inaccurate; they
being British subjects had nothing to do with their
teaching, nor would naturally lead them ^'to teach
their people in favor of the authority and interest of
a fur company." A higher sense of feeling than this
was their rule ; they had a conscience and a faith.
Nor did they ever discourage the early attempts of
a settlers government, either within or outside of their
churches. When, during the meeting in June, 1841,
Vicar General Blanchet gave his opinion that it was
too soon, that, as Commodore Wilkes was expected
here, the committee should wait for his opinion.
That step was by no means an act of opposition, but
on the contrary an act of prudence, which the com-
modore approved of at Sfc. Paul, on June 7th, on
the ground that the country was too young. And
also, on a later occasion, when he begged that his
name be erased from those of the committee,
that was done in no sense of opposition but for want
of time. In a word, let all comprehend that the two
Catholic missionaries understood too well the deli-
cacy of their position in this new and unsettled coun-
try, to commit such imprudent blunders.

The Catholic Church was progressing at Oregon

152 SKETCHE8 OF THE

City under the teaching of Father De Vos, whose
sermons were touching. On July 31, he received the
profession of faith from Dr. Long and lady and
Miss Cason. In 1846, the following became converts,
viz: Hon. P. H. Burnett, June 7th; Miss Walter
Rogers, Aug. 3d; Maria E. Mc Laughlin, (Mrs.
widow Rae), Oct 4th; and in 1847, Fendell Car
Cason, Feb. 28; and W. Wood, aged 77 years, Mch.
7th. St Paul had also its converts in the persons of
Mr Johnson, and a learned doctor and bis lady,
which were very edifying. No one dared to ask the
doctor why he had returned to his ancestors religion.
Three or four thousand immigrants are expected this
year. The good doctor Long had the misfortune to
get drowned while crossing the Clackamas river on
horseback, ten or eleven months after his conversion.
His remains were buried in the enclosure of the
church of Oregon City, by Father I^e Yos, in the
beginning oijune or July, 1846.

Condition of the Mission at the end of 1844

A deputation of Indians came down from New
Caledonia to Vancouver, in 1844, to call for a mis-
sionary. The number of priests not permitting their
petition to be granted, they returned home sorrowful.
Father De Smet having brought some priests. Father
Nobili started in 1845 for Caledonia. In 1846 anoth-
er Father went to assist him, returning, they came
back in the sprfng of 1847. Mostly all the Indian
tribes of Caledonia had been instructed and baptized.

At the end of 1844, after six years of efforts, dispro"

CJNIVI

CATHOLIC CHURCH IN OREgW. 153

portioned with the needs of the country, the vast
mission of Oregon, on the eve of its being erected
into a vicariate a230stolic, had gained nearly all the
Indian tribes of the Sound, Caledonia, and several of
the Rocky Mountains, and lower Oregon. It had
brought 6,000 pagans to the faith. Nine missions
had been founded; five in lower Oregon, and four at
the Rocky Mountains. Eleven churches and chapels
had been erected, five in lower Oregon, two in Cale-
donia, and four at the Rocky Mountains. One thou-
sand Canadians, women and children, had been
saved from the imminent peril of losing their faith.
The schemes of the Protestant ministers had been
fought and nearly annihilated, especially atNesqualy,
Vancouver, Cascades, Clackamas, and Wallamette
' Falls, so that a visitor came in 1844 and disbanded
the whole Methodist Mission, and sold its property.
The Catholic Mission possessed two educational es-
tablishments, one for boys and the other for girls;
the number of its missionaries had been raised from
eight, (four secular and four regular priests), to
fifteen, without speaking of the treasure the mission
had in the persons of the good Religieuses of Notre
Dame de Namur. Such were the results obtained in
spite of the want of missionaries, which greatly im-
paired all their efforts.

Bishop elect Journey to Canada, Rome, and return
TO Oregon.

The bark Columbia sailed from Astoria to Honolu-
lu in 26 days. She stayed there 12 days which the

154 SKETCHES OF THE

Bishop elect spent with the Piepus Fathers, who had
a splendid stone church measuring 150 feet, a large
congregation and a beautiful Sunday service. The
bark leaving Honolulu on Jan. 12th, 1846, doubled
Cape Horn March 5th, and reached Deal, England,
May 22nd, being five months and eighteen days from
Astoria. The Bishop elect passed to Dover and from
thence to London, where, he remained for ten days,
the guest of Mr. Tabbe Mailly, pastor of the French
chapel in London. Embarking at Liverpool on June
4th, he reached Boston on the 19th, and Montreal,
Canada, on the 24th. A few days after he arrived at
Quebec, whose venerable church at that time was
draped in mourning on the occasion of the burning
of its suburb, St. Roch, a month before, and that of.
St John a few days previous.

Being unable to receive his episcopal consecration
at Quebec, the Bishop elect determined to receive
it at Montreal, with Bishop elect, Prince coadjutor of
Montreal, the ceremony having to take place on
July 25th. The consecrator was the Jume and Rire
Bishop of Montreal. There were present on the oc-
casion,five bishops, besides the two elects, 150 priests
50 other clerics, and an immense crowd of faithfuls.
Canada had never witnessed a festival of such splen-
dor before. It was in Canada that the Bishop of
Philadelphia in part, learned that his title had been
changed into that of Drasa, in May 7th, 1844. After
passing a month and a half in Canada, the bishop of
Drasa left for Boston, July 12th, reached Liverpool,
passed some days in London, went through Brighton,
Dieppe, Rouen, and reached Paris on Sept. 8(h, tak-

CATHOLIC CHURCH IN OREGON. 155

ing his lodging at the Brothers of St. Jean De
Dieu.

The Bishop of Drasa had a great task to perform
before returning to his vicariate; which was to ob-
tain from Rome some assistant bishops, to look for
new missionaries and new sisters, and collect funds
to enable him to buy the requisites for his yicariate^
and pay the freight upon them and also the passage
of the missionaries. All this required much time
and travelling, and going backward and forward.
Hence, it took twelve months, from Oct. 1845 to Oct.
1846, to look for help and funds, followed by waiting
nearly five months for a ship in Avhich to return
home.

His first trip and visit was to Belgium in order to
secure new Beligieuses of Notre Dame de Namur.
On his way he passed through Cambrai, Douwai,
Lille, Gand, Malines and Bruxelles. All who heard
of his mission became deeply interested in it. His
second visit was to Rome. Leaving Paris on Dec.
17th,he spent the festivals of Christmas at Marseilles,
and reached the holy city on Jan. 5th, 1846. He
soon obtained an audience and was received several
times by His Holiness Pope Gregory XYI. The
four months he passed in the eternal city were well
employed. He presented to the sacred congregation
of the Propaganda a memorial on the condition and
wants of his vicariate. He visited the four great
Basilicas and other great churches and monuments.
He descended to the Catacombs several times, and
obtained the relics of four holy bodies of martyrs for
his vicariate, viz: S. Jovian, )^. Severin, S. Flavie

156 SKETCHES OF THE

and S. Victoire. Leaving Rome on the 8th of May,
for Paris, he visited on his way, Livourne, Genes,
Marseilles, Avignon, Lyon, and Chalons. He stayed
some days at Avignon, and remained a week at Lyon,
the guest of the Grand Seminaire. He had been
allowed to address its 300 seminarists, three of them
soon presented themselves for the mission of Oregon;
they were B. Delorme, F. Veyret, and J. F. Jayot.
He assisted, on that occasion, on May 24th, to the
episcopal consecration of Mgr. Pavy, Bishop of Al-
giers.

Having already visited the principal towns of Bel-
gium with much success in 1845, the Bishop of
Drasa directed his steps this year towards Prussia
Bavaria, and Austria. Leaving Paris, June 17, he
went first to Liege and assisted, on the 21st, 'at the
grand procession of Corpus Christi, at which were
present 17 bishojDS, a large number of priests and an
immense religious crowd. It was the jubilee of the
VI century of the festival which took its birth in
the Church of St. Martin. He then visited Verviers,
Aix-la-Chapelle, Cologne, and next, in descending
the Rhine, Bonn, Coblentz, Mayence, Francfort,
Achaffenbourg; after which passing through Wurz-
burg, and Donavert he reached Munich where he
spent 8 days; the guest of the barefooted Fathers of
St. Augustin. And descending the Danube, he next
visited Passau, Lintz, and Vienne, where he remain-
ed three weeks, the guest of the Redemptorist Fa-
thers. On returning he visited Augsburg, and
Strasburg, where he remained a week, the guest of
its illustrious bishop. And on Auo;ust 2 1st he was

CA.THOLIO CHURCH IN OREGON. 1S7

again in Paris, tlie guest of the seminary of foreign
missions.

It was on his return to Paris that he learned his
vicariate had been erected, by Briefs of July 24th,
1846, into an ecclesiastical province, with the three
sees of Oregon City, Walla Walla, and Vancouver
Island ; and that the Vicar Apostolic was called to
the metropolis of Oregon City; Rev. A. M. A. Blan-
chet, Canon of Montreal, to that of Walla Walla,
and Vicar General Demers to that of Vancouver
Island.

In the course of his long rounds, the Bishop
of Drasa met everywhere with the warm sympathies
of Nuncios, archbishops, bishops, pastors of churches?
and the highest authority of each state. He was re-
ceived in audience by their majesties the King and
Queen of Belgium; by his majesty the King of Ba-
varia; by their I. M. the Emperor and Em23ress Mo-
ther, and his highness the Archduke Louis of Aus-
tria; and three times by his majesty Louis Philippe,
King of France.

The sympathies of King Louis Philippe for the
great mission of Oregon prompted him to grant a
free passage to the archbishop and his missionary
companions on the vessels of the royal navy; but this
favor becoming impossible by unexpected circum-
stances, he ordered their excellencies, Mr. Guizot,
minister of the interior, and Mr. Makau, minister of
the marine, to pay each 7,200 fr, as an indemnity for
the expense the delay might put him to. This added
to the 3,000 fr the King had already given him, on
his return from the East, made the fine round sum

158 SKETCHES OF THE

of 17,800 fr received from the Government. God
Hess La belle France for sncli a gift !

The passage on the government vessel failing, the
Oceanic Maritime Society came forward, offering a
passage in October; but that failing, three Belgian
vessels offered themselves, but were found too small
to accomodate 22 passengers. The Oceanic Maritime
Society then bought a vessel which was expected to
start at the end of December. On learning that, the
archbishop went to Namur, returning with the Sisters
to Paris, on Dec. 22nd; but that was a month too
soon, as the vessel was not ready at that time. The
missionaries had also their trouble of coming several
times to Paris for departure and being obliged to re-
turn elsewhere to save town expenses. At last, the
vessel leaving Havre for Brest on Jan. 9th, 1847, the
archbishop and mis^^ionaries left Paris on Jan. 20th,
and reached Brest on the 23rd; but the vessel had
not yet completed her cargo. It is but just to men-
tion here that the pious Leopoldine Society of Vi-
enne, the directors of the railroad in Belgium and
France, and the Messageries Roy ales gave a distin-
guished mark of their sympathies in favor of the
Oregon mission; the first in tendering 4,000 florins;
the second by granting the archbishop and sisters
with their baggage, a free pass on the railroad from
Namur to Paris; and the last in allowing persons
and baggage to pass at half fare from Paris to Brest.

The bark was blessed and called L'Etoile du Matin
by the archbishop, on Feb. 2nd, in presence of a
religious crowed. The wind being favorable, all went
on board on the 10th; but the following day being a

CATHOLIC CHURCH IN OREGON. 159

dead calm all returned on shore. At last, after a
month's delay at Brest, the L'Etoile du Matin, Capt.
Menes, put to sea on Feb. 22nd, 1847. The religious
colony she carried was composed of 22 persons, in-
cluding the archbishop, viz: the seven sisters of
Notre Dame de Namur; the 3 Jesuit Fathers, Gaets,
Gazzoli, and Menestrey, and 3 lay brothers; the fiye
secular priests, LeBas, McCormick, Deleveau, Pretot,
and Veyret; the two deacons, B. Delorme and J. F.
Jayol, and one cleric, T. Mesj^lie: the department
of the sisters was pretty good. A long saloon and a
long table was common to all. An altar had been
fixed at the after part of the ship, whereon holy
masses were celebrated every day, on the rel-
ics of the four holy martyrs. Sunday and evening
services, on deck, were very solemn and impressive.
Prayer,reading and study were the daily occupations
of the missionaries. The beauties of the vast sea
and of the spangled vault, especially of the southern
bright starry firmament at night were subjects of pro-
profound meditation on the powerful creating hands
of God : ''the heavens show forth the glory of God;
and the firmament declareth the work of his hands ;
wonderful are the surges of the sea; wonderful is
the Lord on high.'^

Yes, a thousand times yes, he who said to Simon :
"Thou art Peter, (a rock) and upon this rock I will
build my Church and the gates of hell shall not pre-
vail against it," is the same God, the Son
of God, ''who made all things, and without
whom was made nothing that was made." And
yet, alas ! there have been found pigmies, and

160 SKETCHES OF THE

worms of the earth, men so perverse as, while believ-
ing the power of God in creating the heavens and
earth, proudly and insultingly deny Him the same
efficient power in building^ His infallible Church for
the salvation of souls created to His own image and
likeness; and who foolishly began a pretended refor-
mation. Great God ! What nonsense ! what folly !
what horrible blasphemy !

The sailing of the bark was generally smooth with
the exception of two heavy storms; the first which
came on a sudden from the west, on the parallel of
Rio Janeiro, and lasted 24 hours, carried the bark
some hundred miles out of her course. It was a real
tempest; the second one lasted eight days during
which the wind was veiy high and contrary, and the
sea heavy, when turning from south to north in th«
Pacific. On both occasions the captain appeared
very uneasy.

The land of promise appeared at last on Aug. 8th,
and the bark arrived 12 miles of Cape Disappoint-
ment. She remained outside five da^^s for want of a
pilot and wind. At last, having been five months
and twenty-three days from Brest, and under the
pilotage of Reeves, she crossed the bar safely and
entered the Columbia river late in the afternoon of
Aug. 13th, 1847, and cast anchor in Gray's Bay.
Then it was that the missionaries, in their exceeding
great joy, chanted a Te Deum, which the echoes of
Cape Disappointment and the neighboring hills re-
peated with emulation. On the 17th of August the
L'Etoile du Matin got aground at the mouth of the
Wallamette; and on the 19th, the sisters and mis-

CATHOLIC CHUiH-n IN ORiXION. . 161

sionaries left her for St. Paul, whicli they reachevi on
Saturday the 26th, late at night. The archbishop
left her on the 25th, celebrated a mass in the cathe-
dral at Oregon City on the 26th, reached Chanipoeg
the following day, and from thence, accompanied by
a large concourse of Catholics and Protestants; he
entered the church at St. Paul vested with episcopal
robe, mosetta, crosier and mitre. After the Te Deum
and Beiiediction of the blessed Sacrament, and ap-
propriate words of the archbishop, all retired happy.
The bishop elect had been two years and seven
months absent.

Rejoicings in the Archdiocese. Arrival ok the
Bishop of Walla Walla. Consecration of B/sh-
op Demers. Condition of the Dioceses.

From the arrival of the Archbishop to the sad even^
which put the Catholic jinissions of Oregon upon a
brink of their ruin, there was but festivities and re-
joicings in the Archdiocese, especially at St, Paal.
The presence of the Archbishop in the Church, on his
throne, with episcopal insignia, surrounded by a
numerous clergy , the beauty of the chant, music and
solemnity of the service, were drawing the faithful
who could not be weary of contemplating the beau«
ties of the house of Grod. \

On Sundays, August 29th, and September 5tii. , the
Archbishop mounted the piilpit, and gave some de-
tails of his journey. On the 8rd Sunday, he adminis-
tered the Sacrament of Confirmation to a large num-
ber of persons. On the 4th Sunday, he made an

162 SKETCHES OF THE

ordination, raising Deacon Joyal to tlie priestlioocl.
On the 5th Sunday, he gave Confirmation at fort
Vancouver. On the Gth, 7th, and 8th Sundays, he
was at St. Francis Xaverius mission of Cowlitz, where
he remained two weeks and which, then, contained
25 families, 186 souls, of whom 130 adults and 56
children, and 74 communicants. He confirmed there
50 persons, celebrated High Mass on the 2nd and
3rd Sunday; the office before noon and afternoon
was made solemn by the plain chant and the ^nging
of French impressive canticles by the two choirs of
men and ^omen. He witnessed once more the suc-
successful efforts of the two first missionaries in
teaching, in the French missions, the first couplet of
a large number of French canticles, which were sung
on Sundays and week days, by the whites as well as
by Indians in paddling their canoes. He was at St.
Paul on the 9th Sunday ; made an ordination in
October 31, that of Deacon Delorme to the priest-
hood. On the following day, All Saints, a Pontificial
High Mass was celebrated with a solemnity, as to
chant, music and ceremonies, not witnessed before.
In fine, the 30th of November, 1847, feast of the
Apostle St. Andrew, falling on a Tuesday, put the
crown to all the previous festivities and rejoicings of
the faithful, by the episcopal consecration, which the
Bishop-Elect of Vancouver Island received in the
Church of St. Paul, on that day, at the hands of the
Archbishop, in the presence of a numerous clergy
and a large number of faithful. While the Archbish-
op was on sea, sailing for his Archdiocese, the Bishop
of Walla Walla, who was consecrated on September

CATHOLIC CHURCH IN OREGON. 163

27tb, 1846, left Montreal for St. Louis, in March
1847. Commencing from there a journey of five
months, in wagon, on the plains, he reached Fort
Walla Walla on September 5th, seven days after the
arrival of the Archbishop at St. Paul. He was ac-
companied with nine persons, viz : four Fathers, O.
M. I., of Marseilles and two lay brothers ; and two
secular priests. Rev. Father Brouillet, V. G., of
Walla Walla, Rev. Mr. Reasseau and Guillaume
Leclaire, a Deacon. He was heartily received
by the commandant of the fort, Mr McBrean
and family, who were Catholics, and treated, with his
clergy, with great attention and respect.

By the arrivals from France and Canada, the
ecclesiastical Province of Oregon City possessed in the
Fall of 1847 3 Bishops, 14 Jesuit Fathers, 4 Oblate
Fathers of M. J., 13 Secular priests, including a
Deacon ordained in 1849, and a cleric, T. Mesplie,
ordained in May 1850, 13 Sisters and two houses of
education.

The Archbishop started with 10 priests including
T. Mesplie, two Jesuit Fathers at St. Ignaces resi-
dence, 13 Sisters and two educational houses. The
Bishop of Walla Walla was starting with 3
Secular priests including a Deacon, 4 Oblate
Fathers of M. J., and 12 Jesuit Fathers at the Rocky
Mountains. The Bishop of Vancouver Island had
not even one priest to accompany him to Victoria.
Such was tlie situation on the eve of a most ennnent
dange^

The whole mission of Oregon having been divided
in 8 districts, the three Sees comprised, to the See of

164 SKETCHES OF THE

Vancouver Island were attached the districts of New
Caledonia and Prince Charlotte Island ; to the See
of Oregon City was attached the district of Nesqualy;
the See of Walla Walla were attached these districts
of Colville and fort Hall. On a later occasion, the
Columbia river and parallel 46 became the line of
division between the dioceses of Oregon City and
Nesqualy from the Pacific to the Eocky Mountains.

The three Sees and the districts attached to them
contained numerous tribes of Indians, who had been
visited several times by the Catholic missionaries and
converted in great part to the Catholic faith ; they
wore calling for priests since 1838. The time had
arrived to see their earnest desires acccomplished.
This was to be the case of the Cayuses living on the
Umatilla, their camp being 30 miles from anoth-
er C'-ivuse camp situated on the Walla Walla, a few
miles from tlie fort. The first camp was Catholic at
heart, and their chief Tamatowe offered a home to
the Bishop.

The Diocese of Walla Walla had this speciality,
that it had already three Presbyteiian missions ; one
at Waitlatpu, on the Walla Walla, among the Cay-
Uv^es mentioned above, established in 1836, by Dr.
Whitman ; another at Lapwai, on the Clearwater,
six days journey from the Walla W^alla fort, estab-
lished in 1836 among^ the Nez Perces by minister
Spalding ; and the last established in 1838 by Mr.
Eils among the Spokanes. Hence the trouble, the
Bishop being regarded as an intruder. »

The object of the Fathers, O. M. I.', being the
evangelization of the Indians, they left fort Walla

CATHOLIC CHURCH IN OREGON. 165

Walla with Father Richard, their superior, early in
October, to go and found a mission among the Indi-
ans of Yakima. The Bishop of Walla Walla left the
fort, with his clergy, for the Catholic camp of the
Cayuses, on October 27th., and reached the place the
same day, a Saturday.

The arrival of the Bishop of Wcalla Walla with his
clergy to the fort was a thunderbolt to the Presby-
terian ministers, specially to Dr. Whitman. He was
wounded to the heart by it. He could not refrain
from expressing his great dissatisfaction, saying he
would do all in his power to thwart the Bishop. Such
was the situation of aifairs and the sad prospect of
the Bishop, on Sunday, November 28th., the eve of
the terrible tragedy which brought the Catholic miss-
ions and its establishments in Oregon upon the brink
of its ruin; for at the sight of the good already done
and to be done by the army of the zealous mission-
aries just arrived, the devil, shaking with anger and
rage, resolved to make his last efforts to utterly ruin
the Catholic clergy on this Coast; hence the horrible,
drama.

The Dr. \*/hitman and Wife 2v[ii{I)f

The emigration of 1847 had brought dysentery and
measles among the Protestant camp, 197 of them
had succumbed to the epidemic. The Indians al-
ready much displeased with their teacher. Dr.
Whitman, for his lack of good faith and lidielit^nn his
promises, suspected him of poisoning them. They
were confirmed in their suspicion by the report of a
certain half-breed of the place, called Joseph Lewis,

166 SKETCHES OF THE

raised in the Eastern States, saying : ''He Lad heard,
at night, Dr. Whitman, his wife and minister Spald-
ing speaking on the necessity to kill them, in order to
seize their lands ;** and adding, ''If you don't kill
them, you will be all dead next Spring." Thereupon,
the death of Dr. \Yhitman was resolved.

On Sunday, the 28th, , six other Indians were bur-
ied. On Monday, the 29th., 1847, after having bur-
ied three other of their brethren, a certain number of
them went to Dr.* Whitman's establishment about 2r
or 3 p. M., and entered his yard, carrying weapons
concealed under their blankets, while the few men
were busy, they began their work of destruction, by
butchering the Doctor, his wife and 8 other Americans
that day.

On Monday, November 30th., the Vicar General
having to go and baptize some sick children at the
Protestant Cayuse camp according to promise, he
started and arrived there at 7 p. m. There it was that
he heard of the atrocious drama. He passed the
whole night awake. On the morning of Dec. 1, after
baptizing the children, he went to the dreadful place
of the massacre, consoled the woman kept in the
Doctor's house, washed the bodies and buried them
with the assistance of a Frenchman called Standfield
who had been spared ; and all that in the presence of
the murderers ; and going once more to console the
women, he started in haste in order to meet and save
Minister Spalding's life who was coming on that day
from the Cayuse camp to the Doctor's house.

catholic church in oregon. 167

Narrow Escape of Mr. Spalding. — The Lives oe Fa-
ther Brouillet, Bishop and Clergy in Great Dan-
ger— The Prisoners Redeemed and Carried to
Oregon City by Chief Factor Ogden.

Father Brouillet was much pained when, in starting,
he saw one of the murderers following him with his
interpreter, who was an Indian. He had barely made
3 miles when he observed the minister Spalding com-
ing in,who at once called for news. The Vicar General
hesitates, the minister urges him ; the Vicar General
evades his questions and keeps an animated conver-
sation with interpreter and murderer. He begs for
mercy and the life of the minister ; the murderer hesi-
tates, and says at last he must go and consult his
friends, and forthwith starts at full speed. Then,
Father Brouillet reveals to Mr. Splalding the horrors of
the slaughterer, the subject of his conversation with
the murderer, the object of 'his running back, and
recommends him to take a determination at once, if
he wishes to save his life, as the murderer will soon re-
turn. Mr. Spalding is struck with terror ; he utters
sad lamentations, asks many questions, and knows
not what to resolve upon. He asks and receives pro-
visions, and Father Brouillet leaves him still talking
with the interpreter. At last he rushes to the forest
at dusk in the evening. The Vicar General had
scarcely made a few miles when he heard the racing
trot of horses ; they were three men, and gave vent
to their great displeasure when they did not see Mr.
Spalding. From that day the life of Father Brouillet
was not safe from danger. He v/as held responsible

168 SKETCHES OF THE

for the escape of the minister. That night he passed
also without sleep.

On Thursday, December 2nd. , he reached the young
chief Tamatcnne camp early. On learning the atroci-
ious deed, the Bishop, and clergy, and the whole
camp were struck with consternation. A few days
after an express arrived from Fort Walla Walla, in-
forming the Bishop that his life and the lives of the
IDriests were in great danger, on the part of a certain
number of Indians who could not forgive Father
Brouillet for having deprived them of the chance of
adding another victim to the ten first ones. On the
3rd., the Bishop assembled the chiefs, expressed the
deep pain and sorrow he felt at the enormous crime,
and recommended them earnestly to use their influ-
ence in order to save the widows and orphans. The
chiefs answered that they had no hand in the massa-
cre, and would use their influence to save the lives of
the captives. A few days later, a young man, who
stayed in the Doctor's mill, 20 miles distant, was also
killed ; the rest had the chance to escape. On the
10th., the two sick men w^ho were spared on the day
of extermination, were drawn from their beds and
cruelly massacred. On the 11th., one of the captives
was carried away to the tent of one of the chiefs.

On December 16th., the Bishop received a letter,
dated 10th., from Mr. Spalding, relating the hard-
ships of his six days travelling but at night, partly
on foot, begging him to tell the Indians that the
Americans would not make war ; and the Americans
not to come for revenge, and to send his letter to the
Governor, On December 20th., the great and subal-

CATHOLIC CHURCH IN OREGON. 169

tern chiefs repaired to the Bishop's house to hold a
council before him and his clergy, in which after a
long talk and deliberations, a manifesto was drawn,
and given to the Bishop to be sent to the Governor
with a letter from him. The Bishop availed himself
of the occasion to recommend once more and earnest-
estly that they who had carried away some of the
captives, to return them without delay.

As soon as the sad tidings of the Wailatpu mas-
sacre had reached Fort Vancouver, Chief Factor Og-
den, knowing the importance of a prompt action,
started without delay to come to the help and rescue
of the captives. On reaching Fort Walla Walla on
December 19th, he sent an express to notify all the
chiefs to come and assemble at the Fort. On a first
invitation, the Bishop begged to be excused ; on a
second, he came down with his clergy. The assem-
bly took place on December 23rd. Chief Factor
Ogden strongly deprecated the horrible massacre,
threw the blame on the chiefs for not restraining the
young men, and said he did not come on the part of
the Americans, but only on the part of the Hudson
Bay Company ; he would not promise peace, but
would employ his influence to obtain it ; that he
had come to redeem the prisoners, and exjoected he
had not come in vain. The chiefs answered him that
in consideration of his age, white hairs, and the as-
surance that he was unable to deceive them, they
would grant his request. The Nez Perces chiefs
consented to release Mr. Spalding, his family and
other Americans held as hostages.

On December 29, the prisoners of Wailatpu, 51 in

170 SKETCHES OF THE

ail arrived at the Fort ; those of Lapwai, 11 in all ar-
rived on January 1st, 1848, under an escort of 50
warriors. A high price was paid for all the captives.
The following day was fixed for the departure, now
most urgent on account of the strange rumors which
circulated among the Indians, that the Americans
were at the Dalles, coming for a revenge ; which ru-
mors might in a moment make the Indians change
their minds and try to keep the prisoners as hosta-
ges. The Bishop accepted a passage on the boats ;
he was accompanied by Rev. Mr. Rousseau, and by
Father Richard, O. M. I. In spite of all the dili-
gence made by Chief Factor Ogden, the boats ven-
tured jnto the stream but at 2 p. m., just in time to
escape the 50 Cayuse warriorss who arrived scarcely
an hour afterwards to kill Mr. Spalding, and no
doubt, keep the others as hostages.

At the Dalles, the Minister Spalding showed the
true spirit which animated him towards the Indians*
quite different from that expressed in his letter to
the Bishop of Walla Walla, in urging Major Lee to
go in haste in order to take them by surprise ; and
in- designing to Major Magone those who deserved
death, with the exception of five or six to be spared.
The boats reached Fort Vancouver on January 8fch.
On the 10 1 h Chief Factor Ogden delivered the pris-
oners to the Governor at Oregon City, with the letter
of Mr. Spalding to the Bishop, the manifesto of the
chiefs, accompanied by the Bishop's letter to the
Governor. The editors of the Oregon Spectator
would publish but a part of Mr. Spalding's letter ;
but Mr. Ogden saying, ''must publish all or noth-

CATHOLIC CHURCH

ing," they consented, but with much repugnance.
On Jan. 15th, the Bishop of Walla Walla, after
hard trials and eminent dangers arrived safe at St.
Paul, the residence of his brother, the Archbishop
of Oregon City,

After the Bishop's departure, the Yicar General
Brouillefc left Fort Walla Walla and returned to
Umatilla with Mr. Leclaire. He remained there till
February 20 th, in the midst of thousands of rumors
of troops at the Dalles, of battles and of villages be-
ing burnt. He had promised the cayuses of his mis-
sion to remain with them as long as the peace would
last ; so he did, in spite of many dangers on the part
both of the Indians and the Americans. The first
fight with the Americans having taken place on Feb.
19th, he thought he was disengaged from his word,
and left the following day for Fort Walla Walla.
But the Indians were so displeased with his depart-
ure, that they plundered his house and set it on
fire. And as the Commissioners called by the chiefs
to treat on the peace were leaving on March 13th, he
availed himself of the occasion to go down with his
companion. He was accompanied by the Kev.
Fathers Chirouze, Pandosy, and others of the Yak-
ima mission; all en route for St. Paul of Wallamette,

EFFECTS OF THE MUEDER AND WAR UPON THE CATHOLIC AND
PROTESTANT MISSIONS.

The Murder of Dr. Whitman and others had the
effect of bringing in eminent danger the lives of the
Bishop and his clergy. The war which followed
brought the Cayuse mission to an end only for a
short time ; for a few months after, the Cayuses of

172 ' SKETCHES OF THE

Umatilla recalled their priests ; and the Bishop start-
ed from Vancouver, June 4th, 1848 to return to them.
He reached the Dalles, when he was forbidden to go
further, by Mr. Lee, Superintendent of Indian Af-
fairs, and he began a mission at the Dalles, which
was a part of his diocese. The Oblate Fathers re-
turned unmolested to the Yakima mission, about the
same time. Very different were the effects of the
murder and war upon the Presbyterian Missions of
Wailatpu, .Lapwai and Spokane. They had for
effects their total destruction forever ; for not only no
Indians recalled their Ministers, but none of them
would have been safe there. Knowing this, the min-
isters Ells and Walker hastened to leave their Sx)0-
kane mission at the beginning of the War under a
strong escort.

BLACK INGRATITUDE AND INFAMOUS CALUMNIES OF MR. SPAL-
DING. THE CATHOLIC CHURCHES IN DANGER IN LOWER
OREGON. A PETITION TO THE LEGISLATURE AGAINST
THE PRIESTS.

The loss of the ministers and their friends was
too great not to be deeply felt. To their grief suc-
ceeded fits of anger which they discharged upon the
Bishop and his clergy. The minister Spalding shut-
ting his soul to all the noble sentiments of gratitude,
and forgetting all its duties, accused the Bishop and
his clergy of having been the instigators of the hor-
rible massacre. He published in the Oregon Amer-
ican of 1848, an incorrect history of it, containing
16 calumnious charges. Father Brouillet, in giving
a true history of the massacre, boldly refuted the
charges in a pamphlet of 107 pages, published by the

CATHOLIC CHURCH IN OREGON. 17^

Freeman's Journal in 1853, and republished by \he
Catholic Sentinel in 1869. But the orally maliciouS'
charges' of the minister, from the beginning had al-
ready produced the evil fruits of deep and fatal im-
jDressions ; and the excitement became so great that
the volunteers in starting said that their first shots
would be for the Bishop and his priests ; and that,
for several months, the Catholic Churches and es~
tablishments in the Wallamette Valley were in the
greatest danger of being burnt down. But not sat- .
isfied with that, the ministers became jealous in see«
ing the Jesuit Fathers safe and quiet among the In-
dians at the Rocky Mountains, the Oblate Fathers
returning to their mission at Yakima, and the Bishop
attending the prayers of the Umatilla Indians, en
route for that mission, while they could not return.
This being too much, they conceived the plan of a
petition to be drawn up and largely signed, repeat-
ing the infamous charges, and to be sent to the Leg-
islature. It was presented, but by that time the
good common sense of the people had made them,
right; two-thirds of the Legislature voted against it,,
and the officers of the army, their soldiers and the
volunteers, becoming better acquainted with the
true facts on reaching the seat of War, did homage
to the truth in acknowledging the honorable ani
loyal conduct of the Bishop and his clergy.

Father Brouillet's pamphlet in 1848, 1857, 1869, and-
1871. Charges RENEWED in 1869 and 1871 and an-
swered in 1872.

To those who never read Father Brouillet's pam-
phlet, made in 1848, and published in 1853, and who^

174 SKETCHES OF THE

desire to know its contents, we give the title of its
five chapters, viz:

1. The remote and immediate causes which led to
the Whitman massacre.

2. Documentary evidence proving the foregoing
assertion.

3. Eeview of the evidence adduced in the forego-
ing chapter.

4. Journal of the principal events that occurred in
the Walla Walla country from the arrival of the
Bishop and his clergy until the moment they left for
the Wallamotte valley. Letter of Father Brouilllet,
from fort Walla Walla, March 2nd, 1848, to Col.
Gilliam. Letter of II. H. Spalding, from Clear
Water, Dec. 10th, 1847, to the Bishop of Walla
Walla. Meeting of the chiefs at the Bishop's house,
and their manifesto. Arrival of chief factor Ogden,
and redemption of the captives. The Bishojo at the
Dalles, en route for Umatilla.

5. Summary of the principal accusations made by
Mr. Sj)alding against the Catholic clergy of Walla
Walla, with an answer to each of tliein.

But this was not the end of the trouble; the char-
ges were renewed; this time not by one minister on-
ly, nor presented only to a territorial legislature for
action; but by an army of ministers, and presented
by them for action to the highest authority in the
country, the Senate: for as the infamous and mali-
cious charges made by H. H. Spalding against the
Catholic clergy of Walla Walla, had reached the va-
rious Protestant sects of Oregon and the Eastern
States, and were believed by them as gospel truths;

CATHOLIC CHURCH m OREGON. 175

and whereas, liostile to oacli other in principles, they
are always ready to join together in an assault on
the old mother church, they availed themselves of a
chance of showing their hatred to her, 22 years after
the massacre, on the following occasion.

In 1857, a special agent of the Treasury Depart-
ment, J. Ross Browne, was sent to the far West, to
make a rej)ort on the condition of the aborigines, and
the potent causes of war between them and the
white settlers. On finding that Father Brouillet's
pamphlet was an important document on the subject
he embodied it in his report, which the U. S. con-
gress published as Executive Document No. 38, 1859.
The fact remained unnoticed for ten years, till on a
sudden, during the year 1869, it drew the attentio n
of '^even Protestant associations, or sects in Oregon,
and three in the Eastern States; and greatly aroused
their ire, because ''It severely reflected upon the de-
voted missionaries of the American board." Hence,
the many resolutions of each sect, severely blaming
the action of the Senate, calling Father Brouillette's
pamphlet, ''a libel on Oregon's history, and a gross
and malicious calumny," endorsing the most infa-
mous charges of H. H. Spalding and ascertaining
them, as if, after a lapse of 22 years, and so far
from the spot, they had been eye witnesses, and
had seen and heard all; whereas. Col. Gilliam,
his soldiers, and the volunteers, on the spot
two months after the massacre, becoming better ac-
quainted with the facts, had exonerated the Bishop
and his clergy from all blame: which the legislature
did also in Dec. 1848, by rejecting the petition, re-

176 SKETCHES OF THE

peating the charges and demanding the expulsion of
the priests from the Indian country". The action of
these ten Protestant sects having been embodied in
a pamphlet of 81 pages, the same was passed by Mr.
Spalding to Mr. A. B. Meacham, Supt. Indian affairs
in Oregon, and passed by him to Mr. Delano, Secre-
tary of the Interior, who presented it to the Senate on
Feb. 8, 1871, and is known as Executive Document
1^0. 37, 1871,

This executive document No. 37, 1871, was ably
answered and victoriously refuted in 1872, by Father
Brouillet, raid the Catholic world: by the first in a
pamphlet of 18 pages in double column, which the
Catholic S:':NriNEL reproduced in July and August,
1872; and wherein he declares unreliable, and mali-
<iious the evidences of the ten churches, and proves
that point of evidence under the following heads:
1, Falsification of official rej)orts; 2, falsification of
depositions; 3, falsification of quotations; 4, falsity
of statements; by the second in an article of 18
pages in. double column, to be found in the magazine
of February, 1872; wherein it says of the executive
document No. 37, 1871: ''We have had recently
placed before us an official document printed at
the public expense for the edification of the United
States Senate, and, no doubt, Mddely circulated
throughout the union under the convenient frank of
many pious members of Congress, in which are re-
produced calumnies so gross, and falsehoods so
glaring, that we consider it our duty not only to call
public attention to it, but demand from our rulers at
Washington by what right and authority tlie}^ print

CATHOLIC (niUilCH IN OREGON. 177

and circulate, under official form, a tissue of falsifi-
cations, misrepresentations, and even forgeries,
against the religion and the ministers of that religion
which is professed by five or six millions of free
American citizens."

We give here below as a curiosity the strange
names of the ten churches or associations mentioned,
above, viz: —

The Oregon presbytery of the United Presbyterian
church; the Oregon presbytery of the Cumberland
Presbyterian church; the Oregon presbytery of the
United Presbyterian church; the Congregational
Association of Oregon; the Oregon annual conference
of the Methodist Episcopal church; the Pleasant Bute
Baptist church of Oregon; the Christian brotherhood
of the State of Oregon; the Steuben presbytery of
the Presbyterian church, New York; the citizens of
Steuben, Alleghaney and Chemung counties, Kew
York; the citizens of Oberlin, Ohio.

Of these associations and hundreds of self-estaijr- .
lished churches, which obstinately and so constantly
fight against the old mother Church of Christ, we
would say: if these Y*^ould allow to God as much wis-
dom and sense as to a man willing to build a high
fabric, they would understand that He who made the
heavens and earth so perfect and so lasting for the
sole enjoyment of man, must have made most perfect
and lasting, that is, infallible, his church made for a
higher object, the salvation of souls so dear to Him.
Therefore, no need of the so-called Reforma-
tion; therefore the teaching of that ark is the sin.
of Oza; i!: bring., death and damnation.

178 SKETCHES OF T3HE

An Indian understands that at once, made tangible
to him on the Catholic I-adder.

Chronological Notes.

1847. Rev. P. McCormick takes charge Oregon
City, Sept. 6; and Rev. B. Delorme of St. Louis,
French Prairie, on Nov. 3. The news of Dr. Whit-
man's murder reaches Oregon City on Dec. 8, and is
communicated to the legislature the following day.

1848. The Bishop of Walla Walla arrives at St.
Paul on Jan. 15. Mission of Rev. V. E. Deleveau
to Fort Vancouver, Feb. 1. The archbishop confirms
23 persons at Oregon City, Feb. 13th. The three
bishops availing themselves ot the chance of their
reunion at St. Paul with a large number of clergy-
men, hold the first provincial council of Oregon City,
in that church, in Feb. 28, 29, and March 1, in w^hich
regulations for discipline, and 16 decrees were made
which received later the approbation of the Holy See.
On March 12, Bishop Demers leaves Fort Vancouver
with the Spring Express, for Walla Walla, Colville
and the Rocky Mountains, en route for Canada and
Europe, in order to raise funds, and look for mission-
aries for his Diocese. On May 4th, 1852, he was at
Oregon City, en route for Victoria, wdiile the arch-
bishop was assisting at the I Plenary Council at Bal-
timore. Rev. J. F. Jayol is sent to Cowlitz, for the
Nesqualy Mission, March 19. The Bishop of Walla
Walla celebrates pontifically at St; Paul, on Easter
Sunday, April 23. Mission of Rev. F. Veyret to the
Sound, May 8. Bishop of Walla Walla leaves Van-

CATHOLIC CHURCH IN OREGON. 17*J'

couver, June 4, for his mission of Umatilla; arrived
at the Dalles, being forbidden by the Supt. Indian
Affairs to go further, he establishes the Dalles mis-
sion of St.- Peter. On Aug. 23, Admission of the
Fathers O. M. I., by the Archbishox:>, in the district of
Nesqualy, to attend the Indians of the Sound, they
estabiished their mother house a mile from Olympia
and from thence Tisited the Indiaus of the Bay.

On Sept. 12, four Sisters of Notre Dame ar--
rive at Oregon City for a residence. They oc-
cupy the presbj^tery, and open their school on the
15. Rev. J. Lionet, and Father Lampfrit, O. M. I,
arrive over the plains in October. The archbishop
leaves St. Paul for his residence at Oregon City, on
Dec. 21. He passes a month at Mr. McKinley's,
and rents a house from Mr. Pomeroy for the rest of
the winter. Rev. J. Lionet is sent, Dec. 28, to es-
tablish a mission at Astoria; instead of that he estab-
lished it on the other side of the Columbia, on a land
which he cultivates.

The admission of the Oblate Fathers,in the district
of Nesqualy, Aug. 23, 1848, having for object the
care of the Indians on the Sound, Rev. Father Vey-
res was recalled from the Bay and put in charge of
St. Paul's in the beginning of September, same year.

1849. Rev. A, Langlois leaves Oregon for Cali-
fornia, in January. Gen. Lane, first governor of the
Territory, arrives at Oregon City, on March 9th,
Same day. Father Lampfrit is sent to Victoria
during the absence of Bishop Demers. A large bri-
gade composed of families of St. Pa,ul, St. Louis and
Vancouver, starts on May 19, with Rev. B. Delorme<>.

180 SKETCHES OF THE

for the California mines, discovered in 1848. Arri-
ved on the spot, a burning fever decimate them; 40
are carried away by the epidemic, viz; 20 heads of
families, 13 single men and boys, 4 women and some
children. Father Delorme exhausted with fatigue,
is also seized by the fever and barely escapes the
danger.

St. Joseph College, St. Paul, is closed in June, in
consequence of the California mines. On Saturday,
June 9th, the Sisters of Notre Dame, of Oregon
City, enter their new large house, built on a block
given them by Dr. McLaughlin. On the following
day, the archbishop blesses it and celebrates the first
mass in its chapel. Deacon G. Leclaire is raised to
the priesthood, Oct. 21. Rev. B. Delorme returns
from California by sea, and* arrives Dec. 2G. A pick-
et of soldiers, under the command of Col. Backentos,
passes the winter at Oregon City. Mrs. Backentos be-
comes a convert to the faith and is baptized with all
her children by the archbishop.

1850. The murder of Dr. Whitman and others
had brought war against the Cayuse tribe. It lasted
two years, (1848 and 1849) without catching one of
the murderers. And while it caused the fall of the
Presbyterian missions, it had the effect of increasing
those of the Catholics by the establishment of St.
Peter's at the Dalles, and converting five suj)posed
Cayuse murderers from Presbyterianism to Catholic-
ism. For the civil authorities absolutely requiring
the extradition of the murderers, the Cayuse chiefs
found at last fiYe men who consented to go down,
not as guilty, but to have a talk with the whites and

CATHOLIC CHURCH IN OREaON. 181

explain all about the murderers, ten in number, who
were no more, and who had been killed by the whites,
the Cayuses and were all dead. Sent by the chief s'on
this message, they expected to return home: they
\i ere delivered to Gov. Lane early in the spring,
broilght down to Oregon City and kept as prisoners.
Their trial took place, * 'Notwithstanding the priso-
ners were pre-doomed to death," says the ''River of
the West"; therefore it was a sham trial which
deeived no one; and they were sentenced,
May 27, to be hung. The execution took place on
June 3, at 2 p. m., before an immense crowd. On
hearing their sentence, their thoughts were to save
their souls, and call for the priest. The archbishop
went to see them without delay, and continued to go
twice a day to teach them and prepare them for bap-
tism and death. The minister Spalding went early
to see them, but they refused to hear him and pray
with him. Such were the fruits of the eleven years
of the doctor's teaching. They call the priest: had
the priests counseled them to murder the Doctor, it
vv^ould have been to assail them with reproaches.

On the eve of their death, the old chief Kilo Kite
and his four companions made a declaration in da-
plicate, before Henry H. Crawford, sergeant, Co. D.,
R. M. R., and Robert D. Mahon, corporal, Co. A.,
R. M. R., declaring; the first that he was opposed,
his two sons took part, and were killed; the second
that he was absent, and came the day after; the third
that he saw the deed, did not participate and was
sorry; the fourth and fifth, that they are innocent
and die for nothing: all declaring the priests never

Ig2 SKETCHES OF THE

.counseled the crime (see Catholic SentiJiel^ April 20,
and 27, 1872, for full account.) On the forenoon of
June 3, new questions were made, to the same effect.
On that day they heard a low mass after which they
received the sacraments of baptism and confirmation.
At 2 p. m., the archbishop assisted by the Rev, - F.
^eyret, now a Jesuit, accompanied them to the scaf-
fold,-where the prayers for the dying were recited.
Touching words of encouragement were addressed to
them on the moment of being swung into the air:
'^Onward, onward to heaven children : into thy hands
O Lord Jesus, I commend my spirit.'' There is a
,shameful omission to be found in the ''River of the
"West,'* as to how they died; Presbyterians, infidels,
.or Catholics. A shameful and false charge is found
there also, against the youngest of the five, of having
been cruel to Jos. Meek's little girl at the time of the
massacre, which is as true as the ridiculous story
made by the marshal himself, saying: ''One of them
on the scaffold, begged me to kill him with my
knife." A calumnious falsehood! the truth is that
the old chief Kila Kite proudly refused to let his
hands be tied. But upon the archbishop showing
him the crucifix, he became resigned and kept silence.
That is one of the many inaccuracies to be found in
the ''River of the West." The following fact, so
honorable to the citizens of Oregon City and all w^ho
joined with them, should not be omitted; that on
heari'ng of the innocence of the five Cayuse prisoners
they began to circulate a petition to get them a res-
pite, their sympathies increased much more on learn-
ing their declaration; but, the governor being absent,
there was no one to sign it.

CATHOLIC CHURCH IN OREGON.

183^

Rev. T. Mesplie was ordained a priest on May 25.-
In answer to the request of the bishops assembled
in council, at St. Paul's in 1848, there arrived from
Eome, on Sept. 29, briefs bearing the date of May
31, to the effect of creating the district of Nesqualy
into a diocese, and transferring the bishop of Walla
Walla to that see; and suppressing the diocese of
Walla Walla and passing its administration and
those of the districts of Colville and Fort Hall to the
archbishop, in consequence of which the Bishop of
Nesqualy leaves the Dalles, visits St. Francis Xavier
mission of Cowlitz,, and on Oct. 27, fixes his residence
at Fort Vancouver.

Having thus, brought our history of the Catholic
Church in Oregon down to the present establishment
of the three sees of Oregon City, Nesqualy, and Van-
couver Island, we close our sketches.

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